Never Give Up
by megamatt09
Summary: AU. Dolores Umbridge has silenced many critics to the Ministry of Magic by breaking their will, and she's sent to Hogwarts to silence Harry Potter regarding his claims of Voldemort returning. Harry isn't one to fold without a fight. Not for fans of Dolores Umbridge because she will be tormented without mercy. Hermione-free zone.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: If this is the first time you've read my works, you should know I'm really not a big fan of Hermione Granger. Therefore, I've decided to do everyone involved (including myself) a favor by excluding her from all future projects. The only reason why I put this note is because I know I will get bombarded with a lot of questions asking where the Wiki-Witch is. I suspect I'll still get a lot of questions asking where she is, because author's notes are like terms of service agreements. Very few people read them, even they when should.**

 **IF you're the type of person who is offended by me excluding a character I have no interest in writing(whether it be positive, negative, or indifferent), sorry. But I'm really not sorry.**

 **With that sorrid business out of the way, on with your feature presentation.**

* * *

 **Part I.**

Dolores Jane Umbridge took a great deal of joy of enforcing the will of the Ministry of Magic. There always were some who questioned the government and did not get the bigger picture of how things should not work. The Ministry needed to keep information under wraps for people and for their own good. The people who served the Ministry seldom understood what a government needed to do.

Some people tried to encourage traditions be tossed to the side in the favor of change. Umbridge disagreed with these people. This change should be prohibited and discouraged.

The woman in pink had been summoned up to the Minister of Magic's office. Umbridge could hardly wait to hear what Cornelius had in store for her. The Senior Undersecretary to the Ministry raised one of her stubby hands and knocked three times on the door. Umbridge waited for an answer to come from the other end of the door.

"Yes, Dolores, come in."

Fudge's tone sounded rather tired and it had to do with one thing. Harry Potter managed to escape expulsion from Hogwarts by a technicality. Umbridge's agitation bubbled over. She sent the Dementors to Number Four Privet Drive in an attempt to silence Harry Potter once and for all. The fact he performed a Patronus Charm was surprising. Dolores adapted quickly and encouraged Cornelius to expel him. He caused problems for the Ministry and would be useless outside of Hogwarts.

Unfortunately, the hearing allowed Potter to get out by the skin of his teeth and this deterred Umbridge.

"You wanted to see me, Minister?" Umbridge asked.

"I received a letter from the Hogwarts Board of Governors," Fudge said. "Dumbledore has been unable to hire a teacher a week before Hogwarts was to begin. And thanks to the new educational decree passed, the Ministry can now appointed an accredited Ministry educational expert to teach the class."

Not too many people were lining up to take the Defense Against the Dark Arts job after the previous teacher had been held captive in his trunk for nine months by the madman. The teacher two years before it had his mind wiped blank after an accident. The teacher three years prior had been burned to death after a failed attempt to steal the Philosopher's Stone. Fudge could really go on and on about them.

"So, have you found anyone, Minister?" Umbridge asked.

"I hoped you would honor me in taking the job, Madam Umbridge," Fudge said.

"Are you certain, Minister?" Umbridge asked. "I would hate to leave you at such a crucial time."

Umbridge grinned despite her outward protest. Fudge bent over his desk and missed it. The chance to shape so many young minds and make them aware of their duty to serve the Ministry without question greatly appealed to Dolores Umbridge.

"Weasley can assist me, and I do have other members of staff," Cornelius said. "Dumbledore may be trying something, and Potter….he could be a danger. I want eyes and ears in this school. The past four years have had dangerous things happen in Hogwarts. All of them tie back to Harry Potter."

"Do you want him dealt with, Minister?" Umbridge asked.

"I want him to learn where he properly should be," Fudge said. "You have helped make many see the light Dolores."

Umbridge smiled. She did make many see the light. Some would call it breaking them, and destroying their will. Dolores called it doing what was necessary to stop them from sewing the seeds of anarchy.

"Of course, Minister," Dolores said. "Potter will learn his lesson just like others have. And what of Dumbledore?"

"Leave Dumbledore to me," Fudge said. "His power base is being taken away. The moment where his grip slips off of Hogwarts, we will have him. He won't take this away from me."

Dolores and several others accepted Fudge's words. He believed Dumbledore to be trying to form an army of students with Potter at the helm to help overthrow the Ministry. Dolores and several others did nothing to discourage those ideas.

"You best prepare, Dolores, it's going to be a long year," Fudge said. "You will naturally have to write to the Board of Governors and assign a book."

The perfect book popped into Dolores Umbridge's mind. One vital question entered her mind along with the book.

"Do you give me full authorization to handle Potter and the other students as I need to?" Umbridge asked.

"Yes," Cornelius said. "And Lucius is assisting me in getting you even more power. It may take a few more weeks. I hope to get it ready within your first few weeks at school."

Dolores enjoyed power. She never had it for years and had been at a disadvantage, believing her mother's words she would never amount to anything.

Thanks to female empowerment, Dolores Umbridge rose through the ranks through the Ministry and became the Senior Undersecretary to the Minster of Magic. This position afforded Umbridge access to information which allowed her even more leverage against the people at the Ministry.

Dolores prided herself as one who would squash anyone who tried to destabilize the Ministry. Many adult wizards and witches thought they could go against the Ministry. Umbridge humbled then. Some juvenile delinquent of an underage wizard would be easily broken.

She couldn't get Potter expelled, but if Dolores had her way, she would make him wish he had.

* * *

Harry Potter knew this was going to be one of those years the moment that Umbridge woman from his trial for underage magic showed up. The distrustful looks a lot of people gave him proved how the Ministry propaganda machine worked.

Harry was used to the scorn and the whispers he was nothing but a liar. The Dursleys branded him as a criminal and he got looks every time he dared step outside onto Privet Drive.

Defensive Magical Theory rested on the desk in front of Harry Potter along with all of the students. Harry made an attempt to read the book. The book had been written in the same dry manner as usual.

"Professor Umbridge?"

One of the students dared speak up to Dolores Umbridge. The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher smiled and looked towards the person in question. She did raised her hand so Umbridge acknowledged her.

"Yes Miss…."

"Dunbar, Professor Umbridge," the fifth year Gryffindor said. "Why are we learning only Defensive Magical Theory in our fifth year? I was underneath the impressive our Ordinary Wizarding Levels have a practical magical application."

"Well, Miss Dunbar, you are not incorrect," Umbridge said. "As long as you study the theory, you will not have any difficulties studying."

"You mean we're not going to get to practice magic in class?"

"You're hand isn't up, Mr….."

"Thomas," Dean Thomas said. "And shouldn't we practice magic in class? I mean, how does anyone expect us to….."

"Mr. Thomas, the Ministry has decided after extensive study there is no need for you to perform the magic as long as you study the theory," Umbridge said. "A failure to perform the magic during the time of examination will indicate a failure to comprehend the theory approved by the Ministry of Magic."

The entire class had been struck dumb by these comments. Another student raised her hand.

"Yes, Ms…."

"Brown, Lavender Brown," the blonde girl said. "You mean to tell me, we won't get any practice at all?"

"Yes, this is correct, Ms. Brown," Umbridge said. "There is no reason why you need to perform practical spells in this school. There is nothing in this school that can harm you."

These words caused Harry to start coughing madly. Umbridge chose to ignore him for a few seconds. The coughing fit persisted and caused Umbridge to stare at him.

"Yes, Mr….?"

"Potter, Harry Potter," Harry said. Umbridge knew well who he was after all. "And I suppose the Dementors attacking during the Quidditch match during my third year was nothing which required defense."

Umbridge figured this was a sticking point. The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher and senior undersecretary of the Ministry of Magic knew the official Ministry word on it. And repetition was necessary to make sure everyone, including Mr. Potter, understood what the truth as investigated by the Ministry was.

"It was an isolated incident, Mr. Potter, and….there were corrections made to ensure the Dementors didn't attack any students ever again," Umbridge said.

"What about Crouch then?" Harry asked. "I take it you don't believe Voldemort is back….."

The entire class gasped at Harry using the forbidden name. Harry took a second to calm himself down.

"Mr. Potter, he hasn't returned you nasty little liar," Umbridge said in her most dangerous voice. "The Ministry of Magic has conducted an investigation years ago, and several Ministry experts deduced He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has perished."

"They were mistaken, obviously, because I've encountered him twice, at least in his present form….."

"Detention, Mr. Potter!" Dolores said, finally getting her moment to trap him. "You may have gotten away with spreading your attention seeking lies….."

"If you knew anything about me, you would know I don't seek attention," Harry said. "And the more you deny this, the more people are going to realize the Ministry has something to hide."

Dolores would not engage him anymore. She wrote something in an envelope and handed it to Harry.

"Mr. Potter, take this to Professor McGonagall's office," Umbridge said.

Harry took the note in his hand and gathered up his things, not wanting them to be left in Umbridge's glance. He turned on his heel and left.

* * *

Minerva McGonagall's stern expression locked onto Harry's face.

"Mr. Potter, would you care to explain what the meaning of this?" Minerva asked.

Harry tried not to roll eyes.

"Professor, you really want me to explain what happened?" Harry asked. "I told the truth and the Ministry stooge Fudge put at Hogwarts didn't like it…."

"Mr. Potter, I know Dolores Umbridge is not…well you should attempt to show respect, as she is your teacher," Minerva said, asking like she swallowed a particular sour lemon.

"She makes it very difficult, Professor," Harry said dryly. "And she has given me detention, hasn't she?"

"Yes, it says for the next week," McGonagall said. "Mr. Potter, you need to be more careful. This is a dangerous climate. Hogwarts is not like it was even last year, and neither is the Ministry. Dolores Umbridge will not rest until the entire Ministry word is accepted by Hogwarts. It's….."

"So, are you telling me it's best to fall in line?" Harry asked.

Harry never fell in line.

"Mr. Potter, I'm just saying you should choose her words carefully," McGonagall said. "She will look for an excuse to get you into trouble, and expel you from Hogwarts. And then, where would any of us be?"

Harry held back any number of comments he could be back. A particularly biting one about how people needed to learn how to fight their own battles came dangerously close to coming out of his throat.

"She's a bully, and they thrive on the fear they cause," Harry said. "I'm not afraid of her."

McGonagall groaned at the stubborn Gryffindor pride. There were some instances where she appreciated it and anticipated it. There were other times where it caused a lot of trouble.

"Mr. Potter, the Ministry is….."

"Interfering with Hogwarts and trying to make sure everyone falls into line," Harry said. "I know, Professor, I have eyes. Their smear campaign this summer showed me how they want to tear me down. Eventually, they're going to slip up."

McGonagall was glad he understood as much.

"Do be careful, Professor Umbridge is in her position at the Ministry for a reason," McGonagall said.

Harry didn't need to be told the obvious. He already knew.

X-X-X

The next night passed around and Harry arrived for detention. Dolores Umbridge waited for him. She resembled a cat which got a particular fat canary. The smug expression on her face made Harry want to hex it off. He stepped inside.

"Good evening, Professor."

"Good evening, Mr. Potter," Umbridge said, the sugary politeness in her tone directed towards him. "Have a seat and we'll get started?"

"What are we doing tonight, Professor?" Harry asked.

"You'll be writing lines tonight," Umbridge said. She stopped Harry from making a motion towards his bag. "Oh, no, I have a quill just for the occasion for you."

A sleek black quill had been placed inside Harry's hand. Harry took the quill it his hand. Something about this quill felt off. He couldn't put his finger on it just yet.

"Where's the ink?" Harry asked.

"You won't need the ink, Mr. Potter," Umbridge said. "I want you to write, 'I must not tell lies' on the paper?"

"How many times?" Harry asked.

"As many as it takes for the message to properly sink in."

Harry took the black quill in his hand.

' _The most consistent tool of brainwashing is repetition.'_

Harry placed his hand on the paper and started to write out the offending words. A stinging sensation spread through the palm of Harry's hand and the words carved into the back of it.

The words "I must not tell lies" glowed on the paper. Umbridge watched Harry for any kind of reaction. He set his jaw and stared back at her.

The first act of using the quill caught Harry off guard. He adjusted and pressed on writing the words into the paper. He wore an expression on his face much like a person who wrote normal lines on the piece of paper.

Three hours of line writing passed until Umbridge looked up from her work and stared at Harry.

"Mr. Potter, you may stop now," Umbridge said. "Show me your hand."

Harry placed the hand down on Umbridge's desk. She looked at the back of his hand. The words barely shined visible.

"What do you think now, Mr. Potter?" Umbridge asked.

"I think you're a worthless bitch and I hope there really is a curse on this position, and you suffer the full brunt of it," Harry said. His eyes flickered into the light and it was his turn to return Umbridge's smug snake expression from earlier. "What do you know, Professor? The detention works. I wasn't able to lie. See you tomorrow night."

Umbridge didn't react. She would have to ensure Potter wrote even longer the next night. He might be able to withstand the pain of the quill for one night. Several nights would be another matter entirely. Umbridge would have him.

After the initial disappointment, the satisfied look returned to Umbridge's face. She would squash the sense of independence this brat acquired against the Ministry of Magic.

* * *

Harry easily navigated the hallways of Hogwarts without any problem. The Map and the Cloak were his biggest weapons against navigating Hogwarts. Filch and Umbridge were on the move throughout the hallways. A couple other teachers were up and the Prefects patrolled the hallway.

The Boy-Who-Lived stopped at a gust of wind coming from the area of the Astronomy tower.

"Hey."

"Hey."

Harry smiled and leaned against the wall to face his visitor.

"So, the Ministry sent someone," Harry said. "A new teacher, her name is Dolores Umbridge. She won't win any beauty contests and she won't win points because of her wonderful personality. She makes Aunt Marge look positively charming."

"Sounds like a real peace of work."

"You don't know the half of it," Harry said holding his hand. "I've been in detention for the past three nights. She's been making me lines. She's telling me to write I must not tell lies, over and over again….with a quill which makes me write in my own blood."

"She didn't?...OH THAT BITCH!"

"Calm down," Harry said. "I'm perfectly fine. It didn't hurt after the first time. And it's starting to get to her a little bit. Every night she is smug, thinking this will be the night where it breaks me. And she doesn't succeed. Ten years in a cupboard won't break me. No Ministry stooge will break me."

Harry could tell the figure wasn't too pleased against it.

"I know you can't stand me putting myself through this to prove a point," Harry said. "And I don't like it any more than you do. This is just something which has to be done."

"You and your hero complex."

Harry noticed a certain amount of fondness. The Boy-Who-Lived extended his arm to show his visitor.

"I can see them…the words…"

"They're only fresh because I left detention not too long ago," Harry said. "They're gone by morning."

"I bet the look on her face is priceless."

Harry smiled for a long few seconds.

"You have no idea," Harry said. "You really have no idea at all."

* * *

Harry left Herbology after class one day. He stopped short almost running into Susan Bones when she left the class. Susan stopped short.

"Oh, Harry, sorry, I didn't see you here," Susan said. "OWL year, and I'm already…..I'm already losing it. It's really weird isn't it?"

"Yes, but you won't be the first, and you won't be the last," Harry said. "I was hoping to run into you."

"Not literally, of course?" Susan asked. Harry stared at the well-endowed redheaded Hufflepuff. "Okay, um…what did you need?"

"I needed to ask you a question, and I figured you would know given your aunt is in magical law enforcement," Harry said.

Susan swelled up with pride at being asked a question by the Boy-Who-Lived. She tried to keep her excitement down and not embarrass herself. As long as she didn't embarrass herself, Susan would be fine.

"I ran across something, a quill, a weird quill," Harry said. Susan answered with a raised eyebrow. "I read it about it in a book. It doesn't need ink, but….when a person writes, it does so in their own blood."

"Oh, you must be referring to a notarization quill," Susan said. "It's used for magically binding contracts from the goblins….use of it otherwise is strictly regulated and it's only through the most extreme circumstances it's used."

"So, to use it, you would have to get special permission?" Harry asked.

"Yes, the goblins regulate the usage of the quill," Susan said. "Only less than a handful have been used. One had been gifted to the Ministry as part of the Goblin rebellion for study in the Department of Mysteries, I think."

"So the Ministry has not been given permission to use it?" Harry asked.

"It's used for high end binding magical contracts," Susan said. "The usage of it is extremely taxing."

"And what would repeatedly writing the same thing over and over again with the quill?" Harry asked.

Susan frowned for a moment. Harry asked some particular specific questions which raised some interesting ones in return.

"I'm not sure," Susan said. "I figure it won't do anything good. It will reinforce the contract several times over, although constant repetition is not healthy. It's likely to cause…damage to the person…..I'm sure if you asked someone, they would be willing to tell you more."

Harry smiled.

"Maybe I should."

"Why do you want to know?" Susan asked. "You…this is odd."

"Just morbid curiosity, Miss Bones," Harry said. "So the goblins would not be too happy if their quill they gifted to the Ministry for research was used for other purposes. Am I correct?"

Susan took a second to consider it. She nodded her head in response.

"They wouldn't be happy, and it would…cause problems if they ever found out, "Susan said. "Why are you asking?"

"Just trying to learn a bit more about the world I've been drawn into and how it works," Harry said. "I have to go….it was nice talking to you."

Susan Bones didn't really know what to think regarding what she had been asked. She would need to write to her aunt. Given Umbridge's presence in this school, something was up. Susan needed to be careful what she said. It wouldn't be too long before Umbridge had all incoming communications coming in and out of Hogwarts monitored for security purposes.

* * *

The final night of detentions passed. Umbridge kept Harry writing with the accursed quill for as long as she could stand doing so. Eventually it got too late for her, closer to sunrise than it was sunset.

"Mr. Potter, you may stop for the evening."

Harry finished the line and dropped it. A faint etching of the words flashed onto his hand.

"Show me your hand, Mr. Potter."

Harry held out his hand for a second. He could see the toad like woman's beady little eyes fixated on it for a couple of seconds.

Dolores Umbridge could not believe after days of writing the quill barely even made a mark on the back of Potter's hand. He acted like these detentions didn't bother him. Umbridge knew it was beyond the capabilities of the Hogwarts Healer to heal the words thanks to the magical nature of the artifact and Potter had been considered to be a slightly average student at best.

"Is everything okay, Professor?" Harry asked.

"Fine, Mr. Potter," Umbridge said. "I do hope you have learned your lesson."

Umbridge reached over to make herself a glass of tea after these long detentions had passed.

"I have, Professor," Harry said. "You must have a great relationship with the goblins for them to allow you to use this quill for your detentions as well."

Umbridge almost spilled the tea she poured over herself.

"I beg your pardon, Mr. Potter," Umbridge said.

"It's a notarization quill, Professor, it's what's the goblins used to have people sign magical contracts," Harry said. "I had no idea; the Ministry and the Goblin Nation were on such good terms. I'm sure the people will sleep soundly knowing you and Minister Fudge have worked so hard to cultivate these good relations between yourself and the goblins."

A sickening feeling dropped to the pit of Umbridge's stomach. Did Potter tell anyone about the quill?

"Potter, you didn't tell anyone about the detentions," Umbridge said after a couple of seconds.

"Well, if people asked me about it, I'm going to have to tell them," Harry said. "After all, I must not tell lies, right, Professor?"

Umbridge's right eye developed a mild twitch. She managed to regain her bearings.

"I told them I was doing lines," Harry said. The fact a small amount of sweat appeared on Umbridge's face made Harry seem a bit happier. "I might have asked a couple of people about the quill."

Time froze thanks to this revelation. Umbridge remained calm, even though any smugness which had been left over left.

"You…you didn't, Potter," Umbridge said, her breath coming out in a hiss.

The goblins were already incensed regarding Bagman running off after being in massive amount of debt. And any thought of being a friend of these creatures.

"Professor, you did teach me not to tell lies."

"Leave, now, Potter," Umbridge said after a couple of seconds.

"Good night, Professor Umbridge, pleasant dreams."

Harry turned around and left.

Umbridge turned to the quill which lay on the table. The blood of Harry Potter shined from the paper. Umbridge picked up the paper and hurled it into the fire to get rid of all of the evidence of the usage of the quill.

* * *

 **To Be Continued.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Part II.**

* * *

"She freaked out because you told her about telling someone else about the quill?"

Harry smiled when he leaned against the wall and addressed the figure in the shadows around the area of the Astronomy tower.

"The funny thing is, I never mentioned it to anyone in this school about the quill," Harry said. "I asked a few people about the quill in general, but I never told them Umbridge was slicing my hand open with a quill every night. I've got her in a delicious state of paranoia right now, and she won't be sleeping soundly for a while."

"At least until she finds out you've played her?" the figure in the shadows asked, a smile crossing over her face. "So, what do you think is going to happen? Are you going to inform the goblins their quill had been used?"

"To be fair, I only have circumstantial evidence it's the same quill Gringotts loaned the Department of Mysteries," Harry said. "Umbridge's reaction was pretty damning though. I'm not going to lie."

Either this was the same quill or it was a pretty solid forgery. Either one seemed to pan out pretty good. The evidence disappeared. Harry figured she threw out the papers he wrote on and likely jumped in the Floo to return the incriminating quill back to the Ministry.

Harry also had sufficient reason not to really trust the goblins and their intentions. There were a couple of variables to consider.

"It would be easy for me to run in there and check."

"Maybe," Harry said. "Maybe it won't….I have a feeling she's just only begun. She's not likely to let this one go."

"No, she won't. Spiteful bitch."

Harry chuckled despite the situation. The term "spiteful bitch" really was the most flattering thing he could say regarding Dolores Umbridge. There were many other terms and none of them were considered the slightest bit polite at all.

* * *

High Inquisitor, Harry wasn't honestly surprised this particular title had been bestowed upon Dolores Umbridge. He was honestly shocked she waited a week before all pretexts were dropped and Umbridge got even more power inside the school.

The fact she showed up in two of Harry's other three classes this day wasn't really a coincidence. Harry had an idea Umbridge was trying to assert her dominance over more aspects of Harry's life. He paid her about as much mind as he thought she deserved.

Exactly how she did these inspections during these classes while keeping up with her own classes remained a bit of a mystery to Harry. He figured the Department of Mysteries loaned her out the time turner at the same time they loaned out the quill.

Then again, the schedules in this school didn't line up half of the time to begin with. Given the magic in the air, Harry deduced some kind of time-space distortion.

' _There are other explanations, I guess.'_

OWL year proved to be very grinding. Harry found himself back in Defense Against the Dark Arts class and reading the second chapter of the most boring book.

This excuse for a textbook gave Harry a renewed appreciation for the works of Gilderoy Lockhart. Granted, they were all bunk. Despite that, one could regard them as somewhat entertaining fictional works.

"Really, are you serious?" Harry asked.

Umbridge almost ignored Harry. She raised her eyebrow when she looked at them. Harry raised his hand high in the air. The entire class turned their attention towards Harry as if he had some kind of magnetic charge around his body.

Almost ten minutes passed, and when it became extremely clear the class wasn't reading their books, Umbridge walked over towards Harry.

"Is there a problem, Mr. Potter?" Umbridge asked in a soft tone.

"Many, but I'll stick with the most obvious," Harry said. "The fact this book is written by a known charlatan is one thing which is troubling."

"Wilbert Silkhard is a certified expert who is approved by the Ministry," Umbridge said.

"Well, you can get along, because his writing is dry, political, and avoids conflict even if it slaps him in the face," Harry said. "Like, his point in Chapter Two, where he suggests anyone who is the victim of a magical spell should remain stationary when being attacked. That seems to be something him and the Ministry has in common."

Umbridge opened her mouth. Harry decided to go for broke.

"You expect someone to stand there and take the attack just because otherwise it would lead to an inconvenience," Harry said. "The Ministry would think this to be the perfect book. It makes everyone think sticking their hand in the sand, and hoping the problem will go away."

"Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr. Potter."

His fellow Gryffindors directed their attention towards Umbridge, other than a couple of notable exceptions.

"You know, Harry's right," Neville said. "Nothing in this book is going to help us in the real world."

"Yes, how are we supposed to get anything from something which doesn't engage us, which doesn't make us think?" Fay Dunbar asked.

"It's not your job to think, you're to learn the material the Ministry deems to be appropriate for school age children," Umbridge said. "Last year, the former Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher subjected you all to exposure to dark magic. He never should have been allowed to show you it."

"Would you rather us see them when a Death Eater is throwing the Killing Curses at us, Professor?" Harry asked.

"Mr. Potter, ten points from Gryffindor," Umbridge said. "And one final outburst like…"

Umbridge took a moment to catch her breath and turn her attention directly away from Harry Potter.

"Last year, the imposter Moody taught you lessons which was not approved by children in your age group," Umbridge said. "The only teacher who stuck with age appropriate subjects was Professor Quirrell."

"Oh, Quirrell, he was the Muggle studies teacher for years, wasn't he?" Harry asked. "Came back after a trip….could have been a half way decent bloke. You know, if he didn't have the slight drawback of Voldemort hanging out of the back of his head."

Umbridge gave Harry a smile.

"Detention, Mr. Potter," Umbridge said.

"Oh, will we be doing more lines, Professor?" Harry asked.

The entire class followed the situation between Umbridge and Harry. This was more interesting than two sets of chasers bouncing around a Quaffle.

"No, Mr. Potter, you will be assisting Mr. Filch in cleaning the castle, and you will be doing so without magic. And you will be doing it until sunrise every morning."

' _And she thinks this is the worst punishment possible. Typical magical bubble thinking.'_

* * *

Harry arrived after dinner to meet the surely caretaker. Filch stared him down for a few seconds.

"Every time I turn around, you're always in trouble of some kind," Filch said. "What is it with you, boy?"

Harry responded by shifting his shoulders back with an almost bored type of shrug.

"I guess it's just my natural charm and ability to get on the wrong side of really miserable people," Harry said after a moment's thought.

Filch refused to engage him anymore. The caretaker escorted Harry into the castle.

"Mess and muck, and you little hooligans think it's funny to give me all sorts of work. Well, let's see how you like it when you're the ones who have to clean up with me. Professor Umbridge, we've worked out a deal. Anyone misbehaves in her class, she sends them my way. A little bit of hard work without magic should teach you all some proper respect."

Harry almost chuckled.

"What do you find so funny, Potter?" Filch asked.

"You and Umbridge don't seem like the type who would get along," Harry said. "I mean, she's a Ministry official and she has all of the hang ups they seem to have. She seems like the type which would hold your heritage against you."

Filch hesitated as if considering Harry's words. He shook them off as just trickery. The boy was just like his father and Black, trying to play a joke on him.

"You really think you're clever, don't you, Potter?" Filch asked.

"Fairly so, but that's not the point," Harry said. "She'll throw you out like yesterday's trash the moment she finds out you're a squib….unless this is the type of job where magical users think you're type is only fit for. Cleaning up after them, congratulations, Filch, you're a step above a house elf."

Filch scowled and pointed towards the cleaning products.

"You better get to work Potter if you want to get back in time for Breakfast. And remember, no magic."

Harry thought this was really mild compared to what he had to do at the Dursleys. Vernon and Petunia made him clean the bathroom floor with a toothbrush. He was forced to clean all of the nasty little grime between the cracks.

The one thing the Dursleys never found out was how Harry used Vernon's toothbrush to do the dirty deed.

X-X-X

Hours later, Filch walked around to inspect the worth. Every single spot of the castle where he had Harry clean was completely clear of all dust.

"So, how did I do, Filch?" Harry asked.

Filch could not believe the brat cleaned better than he could without the use of magic and he was smiling about it. Filch's sputtering grew even more interesting.

"You know, words do help with our communication," Harry said.

"This is impossible!" Filch yelled. "You must have cheated."

"You've been holding my bag the entire time," Harry said. "And my wand is in my bag."

Filch opened up the bag to reveal Harry's wand poking out. The caretaker turned from the wand to Harry and back to the floor. He looked on the verge of breaking down.

"It must be some kind of trick," Filch said.

"I performed every single bit of cleaning you told me to without performing any magic to do the cleaning," Harry said. "Unless there's something else you can think I missed, I did everything you asked."

Filch stared at the sorcerer. He took a look at the spotless floor.

"You've done an adequate job, Potter, but we'll resume this tomorrow night," Filch said.

He would figure out how the boy was cleaning this school better than he ever could without magic. Filch had over thirty years of experience cleaning the school with elbow grease.

* * *

Harry heard the horror stories of OWL year. The teachers didn't given them a moment to breath. Harry figured there were only two sets of grades which mattered through all of Hogwarts. The OWLs, which only mattered because it decided what NEWT level classes they took. The NEWTs mattered though only if someone wanted a job at the Ministry, and given the current state of affairs, Harry figured this particular option was off the table.

' _I wonder how long someone took to come up with names which spelled out to both OWL and NEWT,'_ Harry thought. _'Someone has way too much time on their hands and someone took this entire magic thing a bit too much on the nose.'_

Harry came face to face with Angelina Johnson. The previous captain, Oliver Wood, left Angelina some really big shoes to fill. The fact she had these shoes to fill on top of the NEWT year course load made her a bit short tempered.

"You got yourself in detention again?" Angelina asked.

It sounded like a question. Harry knew this wasn't a question, more like a statement of fact.

"Yes, Angelina, Umbridge didn't like what I said, again," Harry said.

"You need to be careful, Harry," Angelina said.

"So, everyone keeps telling me," Harry said. "I can handle Umbridge."

The teachers weren't willing to do anything to go against Umbridge as these evaluations were going on. The one person who had the ability to do something about her decided to sit back and just let her roll through the school. Given the Headmaster's previous attitude regarding teachers who belittled and bullied students, under some misguided thought this built character, Harry wasn't surprised.

"You should have known she was going to bait you!" Angelina yelled, frustrated at Harry. "She'll get you expelled if you're not careful."

"Ms. Johnson, what is the meaning of this?"

The stern and crisp voice of Minerva McGongall could be heard. The Deputy Headmistress wore her usual expression on her face.

"We're just having a discussion about Harry getting himself in detention from Professor Umbridge," Angelina said. "He's not taking Quidditch….."

"Is it true, Mr. Potter?"

"Yes," Harry said. "I've been cleaning the castle with Filch all night without magic."

McGonagall flinched briefly for a second.

"Mr. Potter, I warned you should be more careful around Professor Umbridge…"

"And, Professor, it's about time for you to figure out what's more important to you," Harry said, doing what few dared to do. He interrupted Minerva McGonagall. "Whether they value their jobs more or the safety of the students."

The mood grew rather cold. A few Gryffindors, along with some other students, had their eyes glued to this conversation. Some of them started to mutter. About what, Harry paid them no mind.

"Mr. Potter, five points from Gryffindor," McGonagall said, flinching. This accusation hit a bit too close to home. "We value the safety of the students above all else….."

"Four years of personal experience disagrees with you," Harry said. "My problem is not with you, it's with the one man who constantly has the power to do something and choses not to."

McGonagall took a step back and considered what Harry said. He wasn't done delivering a killing blow though.

"Don't worry. If I learned one thing at Hogwarts, I shouldn't rely on any adult when my life is in danger."

This one hit even closer to home than anything else Harry said before.

* * *

Harry Potter returned from another night of detentions. Filch loomed ever so closer to madness in a frantic attempt to determine exactly how Harry managed to accomplish such a superb cleaning job without magic. The squib absolutely refused to admit he had been gotten to, even with the not so subtle hints Umbridge was using him as a tool and would discard him. Filch tried to say she would be passing laws with more extreme punishments permitted.

"You just wait, Potter," Filch said. "It's about to change. You little monsters wouldn't dare to cause half of the trouble you did if you knew I could whip you within an inch of your life and hang you out in the dungeons."

Harry didn't want to burst Filch's bubble. He was pretty sure the mail was restricted coming in and out of Hogwarts, but the students had to leave some time. They would tell their parents and other relatives of the change sooner rather than later. They would not be happy.

The most galling thing, and the one thing Filch didn't figure out, was Umbridge was very unlikely to be hung out to dry. She already had Filch earmarked as a scrapgoat. Harry knew it as well as anyone else.

"Filch, you're sad and pathetic man," Harry said. A small amount of pity almost entered his voice even if it passed. "You truly believe she actually gives a damn about you."

Harry grabbed his bag and walked away to leave the squib to stew in his own justices. The carrot Umbridge dangled in front of Filch's face would keep the squib on her side, at least from Harry's perspective.

Umbridge wasn't the only one who could sew seeds of discontent.

Harry walked a few inches and almost ran head long into a figure who made her way down the steps. The quirky blonde stepped back a couple of inches and looked at Harry. She wore some kind of goggles in her face.

"Sorry, Luna, I didn't see you," Harry said.

"No, Harry Potter, the Nargles distracted me," Luna said.

Harry attempted his best to figure out the enigma which was Luna Lovegood. He had two very interesting running theories. The first theory was this quirkiness was some kind of defense mechanism to keep her from getting hurt for reasons unknown. The second theory Harry deduced pointed towards the quirkiness being genuine and Luna having a slightly different perception of the world around her.

"Right," Harry said. "They can be pesky like that."

"I know," Luna said.

Harry could see a frown go over the girl's face.

"Is there anything else wrong?"

"No, these X-Ray goggles don't seem to work," Luna said as she continued to stare intently at Harry. "They can't see through anything but other people's clothes."

Luna's stare lingered at Harry for another moment, the quirky blonde's eyes following down his body for a moment. She smiled and nodded.

' _Curious.'_

Luna turned around and hummed a casual tune before exiting through the corridor. Harry spent a couple of minutes watching Luna leave and responded with a shrug.

"Curious indeed," Harry said.

* * *

The Three Broomsticks had been crowded with several students from the third to the seventh year. They had received a message from a mysterious party which stated to come here if they were disappointed with their Defense Against the Dark Arts teaching. The messages had been delivered to their rooms. Some of them looked nervous, almost expecting this to be some kind of trap.

An entire section of the Three Broomsticks had been roped off. Some of the students exchanged curious looks.

"Do you reckon this might be a trap?"

"Nah, I think it's legit…."

"Could be someone pulling a prank?"

"Whoever pulls a prank like this is…."

"HEM, HEM!"

Some of the members of the group staggered back and some of them screamed. A couple of them spilled drinks on themselves.

Harry Potter waited for the dust to settle before the entire group looked at him.

"Oh, Harry, that wasn't funny," Ginny said. "I swear, I aged about ten years."

"You don't look it," Luna said.

"So, you're the one who called us here?" a fifth year Slytherin girl asked.

Some of the Gryffindors flinched and adopted a very uneasy stance. Slytherins and Gryffindors had a natural state by being at each other's throats. There was a lot of bad blood there.

"HEM, HEM!"

For the second time, everyone jumped up to their feet in terror, before realizing once again it was Harry.

"Harry, are you trying to put us in a bloody grave, mate?"

Harry raised his eyebrow in response.

"We're all here for the same reason," Harry said. "The Defense Against the Dark Arts classes have been put under Ministry control. All of you have been assigned the same textbook, and you know the quality of it."

Everyone resembled glorified bobbleheads. Harry thought he made his particular point. He stared down at some of the Gryffindors and Slytherins. Harry neglected to invite some of the more problematic people who would cause a scene to this little meeting.

Draco Malfoy and his crowd were not invited. They were far from the only ones which was on Harry's problem list. There were "toxic influences" in all four of the houses.

"I know we have our inner house rivalries," Harry said. "This isn't about this. This is about preparing to be the very best you can be with what's to come."

Did Harry completely sell them on the importance of what they needed to do? Some of the looks from them showed they were willing to hear him out even though some of them remained skeptical. Harry knew a few of them still regarded him as a liar. Their desire to learn actual useful magic overrode pretty much any problem they had with Harry.

"This isn't even about whether or not you believe me when I said I saw Voldemort said," Harry said. He could see many of the people there flinch at the same. "I've met him in the flesh while many of you can't stand to hear his name without having shivers. It really isn't about that in the end, is it?"

Everyone shook their heads at Harry's question even though there was no need for it to be answered.

"It's about learning something which can be of value," Harry said. "I might not have been given the title of a Ministry Appointed Educational Expert…whatever that means anyway."

"It means you gave the Department of Magical Education a chunk of gold and took an exam anyone could pass with the slightest amount of preparation," a fifth year Slytherin named Daphne Greengrass said.

"Really, that's what Umbridge did?"

"Yes," Susan said. "It qualifies her to teach classes, nothing more. It doesn't really make her some kind of expert on magical education though."

"I'm sure she doesn't expect people to see through her bullshit, do they?" Megan Jones asked.

"No, the Ministry doesn't," Harry said. "They expect everyone to follow what they say without any question despite their official statement having a lot of holes in it."

"You can really fly a broomstick through some of them," Padma Patil said, and everyone nodded. A few of the Ravenclaws had been looking through some of the recent Ministry press releases since the Triwizard Tournament and they had been seeing some inconsistencies in them.

Harry spent a couple of minutes allowing them to talk amongst each other. The moment's everyone's attention is back on Harry he continued.

"All I ask for is a chance," Harry said. "If you want to leave now, that's fine, I won't hold it against you. If you want to leave the lessons at any time because you're not feeling comfortable, that's perfectly acceptable as well."

Harry pulled out a piece of paper.

"Sign this," Harry said. "It states anyone who is inside the group will not willingly discuss what happens in our meetings to anyone outside of the group. I can assure you the consequences are nothing too humiliating. You won't be able to attend any future meetings though."

Anyone who tried to tell Umbridge of the meeting would have their tongue tied and then they would lose all interest of talking about the meetings or attending them anymore. Something urgent would always come up and distract them from talking about the meetings.

Everyone lined up one at a time to sign the piece of paper. Harry was intrigued to see only about a third of them actually read the paper they signed. Harry filed this away as interesting information for later.

* * *

Educational Decree Number Twenty-Eight hit Hogwarts on Monday morning. Harry Potter looked at the decree with a raised eyebrow and a solid "hmm."

The decree henceforth banned all student organizations, societies, teams, groups, and clubs, and any other regular gatherings of three or more students. So if a group of friends wanted to meet up to study, and the High Inquisitor didn't approve of this meeting, their meeting would technically be illegal by the standards of this particular decree.

Harry was ninety-five percent sure this was a distinct violation of rights.

' _Any student found belonging to a group not approved by the Hogwarts High Inquisitor will be expelled,'_ Harry thought over and over again.

"Harry, you realize what this means, don't you?" Angelina asked.

"This…this means Quidditch," Harry said. "Of course it does…and Umbridge planned this even before the meeting for the Defense Club. This is done the Friday before the meeting, the Friday before we all went to Hogwarts. I made sure those notes didn't fall into the wrong hands."

Harry figured Umbridge was already paranoid about some kind of rebellion. This was some kind of pre-emptive and paranoid strike.

"Harry, if we have any chance to get Quidditch back on….."

"It's not important, Angelina," Harry said.

Angelina's mouth hung open at Harry's statement. She took this a lot better than Wood would have if they had this conversation when he was the captive. Wood's head would have combusted right before their very eyes.

"Umbridge has just outsmarted herself here," Harry said. "She's banned meetings of three or more students. Regular meetings have to be approved by the High Inquisitor, otherwise they're illegal."

"What are you talking about?" Angelina asked. "How can this play into our favor?"

Harry had a wonderful idea how he could make this work. He prepped some of the Harry Potter charm because he would need the help of the entire Gryffindor house to pull this one off.

' _And maybe spread the word to the rest of the school and make Umbridge's day oh so wonderful.'_

* * *

Dolores Umbridge sat at the staff table smug. This decree should give her even more power. A second year girl walked to the table, a timid look on her face.

"Professor Umbridge, do you think I can talk to you for a second?" the girl asked.

"Yes, what is it, Ms. Phillips?" Umbridge asked.

"My friends and I, we get together over Saturday night to do our hair, our nails, and gossip," the girl said in a nervous voice. "And I just saw Educational Decree Number Twenty Eight, and well there's three of us who meet regularly. We're afraid we're not able to do it because of the decree."

"What, what do I care about what you do in your spare time?" Umbridge asked, sounding extremely annoyed.

The girl looked on the verge of hysterics.

"Well, the decree said we would be expelled if any group of more than three students meet regularly," the girl said. "And I don't want to be expelled. My poor sick gran would be so disappointed if I got expelled. So, do you think you can okay our meeting?"

Umbridge grew more and more annoyed. She realized the eyes of all of the teachers were on her, including the Headmaster and half of the students.

"Of course, my dear, that would be acceptable," Umbridge said in her usual sugary sweet tone.

The girl smiled and skipped away from the table to join her friends who ran off giggling. Another student, this one a third year, and a Hufflepuff walked over to the table.

"Professor Umbridge, is it true no societies or clubs can meet together if we don't get your permission?" the third year asked.

"Yes, Mr. Jacobs, it is," Umbridge said.

"Is it too much of a problem to ask your permission for a meeting of the preservation of the rights of toads to take place?" the third year Hufflepuff asked.

Umbridge blinked for a moment. Who would have a club regarding such loathsome creatures such as toads?

"Very well," Umbridge said.

The Defense Against the Dark Teacher and high Inquisitor noted a trickle of students coming up to the table. She was starting to get frustrated.

"Decree Number Twenty-Eight is….."

"Professor Umbridge, can the Cereal Tasting Club of Hogwarts be allowed to continue?"

"Professor Umbridge, a group of us go to the loo in between classes. It's a regular meeting. That isn't going to a problem, is it?"

Umbridge heard requests, some of them for legit clubs, and some of them the most inane requests. She looked up for a moment and saw one Harry Potter walking in the background, whistling nonchalantly.

"Potter, what are you doing?" Umbridge asked.

"I'm just whistling, Professor," Harry said. "Unless I missed an educational decree forbidding whistling, which I do apologize."

"Professor Umbridge!" one of them yelled at the top of their lungs. "How about the My Perfect Unicorn fan club? Can we still hold meetings?"

"Professor Umbridge, how about our toe nail collection society?"

"How about the Witches Against Drunken Broom Flight?" Fay Dunbar asked.

"The Hogwarts Journalism Club?" Megan Jones asked.

"The Secret Society of Sorcerers with Spotted Scarves?

Harry hadn't moved from his position. He observed the show casually. Umbridge noticed him and her beady little gaze directed towards him.

"Potter, what have you done?" Umbridge asked.

"Actually, Umbridge, I can't tell a lie," Harry said. "I spread the word of Education Decree Twenty-Eight, and told everyone if they want to continue their meetings, they should come and ask you."

Umbridge's mouth opened up. She tried to get at Harry. She couldn't quite get to meet him.

"Professor Umbridge….Professor Umbridge…how about….."

"HEM, HEM!" Umbridge yelled, but she further lost control of the situation. She turned to the rest of the staff table.

"Sorry, Professor Umbridge," McGonagall said. "Only the Hogwarts High Inquisitor has the authority to enact the groups, and apparently Hogwarts is a far bit more active than any of us believed."

"Potter, what have you done? Umbridge asked once again.

Umbridge thought she had control this morning. Her morning started out so good. It turned around for the worst instantly.

"I told you, I informed every one of the decree," Harry said. "It said you would have to approve of each meeting between three or more students."

Harry could almost see Umbridge losing rapid control of the situation. She had been swarmed by more requests than ever before.

"No need, to thank me, Professor," Harry said with a bright smile. "I'm just doing my part to help sure the Ministry of Magic maintains order at Hogwarts. If I didn't say anything, we would have a bunch of lawless societies, clubs, and groups, and we can't have that. I mean it would undermine the Ministry's authority."

Umbridge's looked as if she swallowed a lemon. Harry would either get her to repeal that particular decree or drive her mad because of the requests.

"I'm the Hogwarts High Inquisitor, and by my decree, no more of you will be approved for these meetings until I get this sorted out!" Umbridge yelled. "All of you get to class, at once!"

"Sorry, Professor Umbridge, we can't," Harry said.

"What do we mean you can't?" Umbridge asked.

"Well, based on Educational Decree Twenty-Eight, three or more groups of students can't be meeting together on a regular basis," Harry said. "And since many of our classes have assigned seating charts which have not been approved by you as of yet, this is defined as groups of three or more students. Therefore, it's now illegal to attend classes at Hogwarts."

Umbridge attempted to process Harry Potter's insane troll logic in her head. Technically he wasn't wrong, but the decree wasn't intended to be interpreted in such a way. It was only intended to curb any attempts to study beyond what the Ministry of Magic intended.

"Fine, I approve it, now all of you go to class at once," Umbridge said.

Umbridge thought this was the end of it. Harry noticed her composure had been lost a fair bit when a situation spiraled out of the safe zone of control she established.

"Actually, you just said you couldn't approve anything else until it gets sorted out," Harry said. "Sorry, Professor, but I only want people you follow the rules you've laid down. I wouldn't want anyone to undermine your authority. And you wouldn't want to be seen as a woman who went back on her word."

Umbridge stopped short of throwing Harry Potter into detention yet again. Such an act would make him into a martyr this time.

The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher and Hogwarts High Inquisitor rose to her feet and left, leaving a chaotic situation. Harry smiled as he watched her storm from the Great Hall.

' _Gotten to.'_

* * *

 **To Be Continued.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Never Give Up Part III:**

* * *

Dolores Umbridge disappeared after the constant bombardment of people asking for their societies, clubs, and everything else being reinstated. Nothing went the way for the Hogwarts High Inquisitor, and Harry could feel a little bit happy this preemptive strike blew up in Umbridge's face.

' _You really should think these things through before you enact them,'_ Harry thought. _'Then if the Ministry officials were known for their quick thinking, they wouldn't be in the state they would be in.'_

Some time passed before Dolores Umbridge returned to the Great Hall. She cleared her throat with a loud "HEM, HEM!"

"I apologize for the misunderstanding this morning," Umbridge said. "Hogwarts Educational Decree Number Twenty-Eight has been suspended upon further notice. I will inform your Prefects of any further news regarding the application of this educational decree or any further educational decrees. I had assumed the nature of these educational decree was clear. And I would like a friendly reminder any attempts to undermine the authority of this school will not be tolerated."

Harry could see Umbridge's attempt to reassess the situation. The High Inquisitor took some time to take a deep breath.

"I expect all of you to attend class instantly, as it never was my intention to undermine the Hogwarts educational process," Umbridge said. "So many of you are the future of magic, and it would not be adequate if all of you did not achieve your full potential."

Umbridge gave one of her speeches, but only the densest of the students involved bought what she said. After the spectacle today, and the ill-fated educational decree, the High Inquisitor lost a bit of ground.

Harry had a feeling she would find a way to undermine things again. He had Umbridge backed against the wall. A wounded animal was more dangerous than a healthy one.

' _Once her safe zone is eliminated, she's done,'_ Harry thought.

* * *

"So, you managed to get Umbridge to go back on her decree. She must have hated you for that."

"Yes," Harry said. "I went to her class, read her book, and didn't say anything wrong. I'm driving her absolutely nuts now by not saying a word against her. I'm even helping her in some cases."

"I bet that's making her properly paranoid."

Harry smiled.

"You know me, I'm always trying to help," Harry said. "I'm going to get her to lower her guard a little bit…..until the next big bombshell is dropped."

"What's the next big bombshell?" she asked.

Harry's mouth curled into a devious grin. He was having a bit too much fun with this.

"And spoil the surprise?" Harry asked. "It would be telling."

"Oh, you're no fun sometimes," she said. "And what about your completely legal Defense group?"

"I'm sure the new decree is going to be just centered around study groups and Quidditch now," Harry said. "At least, if you listen to certain people that's the case….I'm sure it's going to pop up in the next day or two. Malfoy sure is doing a lot of bragging the Slytherin Quidditch team is going to get approved right away for not having a known mental case on the team."

The girl in the shadows responded with a roll of her eyes.

"Yes, because Malfoy's obsessive stalking habit is considered healthy," she replied. "Has he ever figured out you're into girls?"

"Even if Malfoy was a female, she wouldn't be my type," Harry said. "It's just the personality, talk about your clingy bitch from hell scenario. Not fun at all."

"It's terrifying when you think about it," she said. "But then again, you don't seem to be interested in anyone from this world."

"Some of them are perfectly good people," Harry said.

"And to be honest, if you asked them to sleep with you, their panties would fly off faster than a speeding bullet," she said.

"Yes, they're perfectly good people, but they come with too much baggage," Harry said. "I want to get my NEWTS, tell them where to stick it, and walk out of this Wizarding World, and actually make something out of my life."

"Well, you certainly have your own ambitions," she said. "And given what you've been through….it's a wonder you haven't given up on them a lot sooner."

Harry smiled. He wondered pretty much the same thing many times. It came back to one thing. He wanted to leave his mark in the world. They certainly relied on him even though they refused to lift a finger.

"I wonder as much myself," Harry said. "It really isn't anything personal….well not with some people. With a few of them, it's pretty personal."

Harry leaned against the wall. He was pretty sure despite his Defense club being legal for a few days, it would return back to illegal. Of course, it just gave him more motivation to get the better of Umbridge.

"There's some decent people here, and I wish them the best," Harry said. "It's a pity they're going to be buried underneath so much BS."

"Maybe they'll be smart enough to escape elsewhere while they are sane and have the ability to do something."

Harry smiled at his companion and placed a hand onto hers.

"We can only hope so," Harry said. "There's really no reason for me to be here any longer than I have to."

Harry did wonder if the Ministry realized he had more options. For many, Hogwarts was the be all and end all. Five years ago, Harry may have thought as much. He had been enraptured by the magical world of magic after a dismal time at the Dursleys and didn't see it was just as flawed as many other things in life had. One could also make the argument of the flaws being greater thanks to magic.

' _Things change and people do.'_

"So, usual time at Hogsmeade next weekend?" she asked.

"If you're willing to wait, I've got a couple of things to do before we meet," Harry said. "Heads are going to roll."

"I'm pretty sure they are, knowing you. So what's the plan?"

"Again, that would be telling," Harry said. "Umbridge is going to make her move next."

Harry was pretty much ready for anything the pink toad could throw at him. He had a feeling she was going to fire back. The real question was not if Umbridge was going to fire back. The real question is how would Harry turn it back around on her, and causing her more headaches.

"So, do you think you can drop something off for me at this address? "Harry asked.

"Oh, of course," she said, shifting in the shadows.

Harry figured it would drive Umbridge completely nuts to try and figure out how he was slipping messages past her. The Hogwarts post, Floo, and everything was being monitored.

* * *

Education Decree Number Twenty-Eight, take two, had come out by Friday of this week. It had explicitly barred any study group, and also it had listed an entire group of societies which were banned without permission. One of them were magical sports teams, which meant Quidditch. Harry figured as much.

A quick study of law showed Umbridge overstepped her bounds with trying to control magical sports. A pushover like Bagman would have let Umbridge get away with this. Someone else on the other hand, well things might have been different.

"Oh, the Slytherin Quidditch team got permission straight away, because we don't have a head case on our team like Potter," Draco Malfoy said.

' _Oh, just enjoy your moment, Malfoy,'_ Harry thought.

"I mean, I don't even know why people believe Potter, he's obviously pathetic," Malfoy continued. He could see a few people glare at him. He didn't recognize the glares of hatred directed towards him. The blonde ponce was just glad he had an audience. "He's always seeking attention from everyone. He's nothing special, nothing at all."

A nondescript man with black hair and Ministry issued robes entered the Great Hall. Umbridge noticed the man and frowned.

"What do I owe the pleasure, Director Boner?" Umbridge asked.

"Madam Umbridge, I hope you are will," the man named Boner said. He cleared his throat. "Excuse me everyone, my name is Lloyd Boner. I'm the broomstick safety expert of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, and I wish to have a word with the Slytherin Quidditch team."

Draco, and Montague, the Captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team, sauntered forward. The smug expressions plastered on their faces were obvious.

"You're Draco Malfoy, aren't you?" Boner asked.

"Yes, I am," Draco said. "And you are….."

"I have to have a word for you about the broomsticks your father bought for the Slytherin Quidditch team in 1993," Boner said. "They are Nimbus 2001 brooms, aren't they?"

"Yes, Mr. Boner, they are," Draco said.

"Well, I'm afraid I'm going to have to confiscate them, young man," Boner said. "A recall has been issued by the Nimbus broom company last year from the 2001 model. The broom has been judged to be unsafe, as it's flight control has degraded."

"The brooms handle perfectly," Draco said.

"I'm afraid they are going to put you in horrific danger," Boner said. "I'm going to have the brooms collected and destroyed."

"You can't do this, my father bought the brooms for the Slytherin team!" Draco yelled.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Malfoy, I'm certain your father will take more stock of your safety, than anything else," Boner said.

"There's nothing wrong with them!" Draco yelled.

The Ministry official stared down Draco Malfoy with a narrowed expression.

"I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you did not know of the ban," Boner said. "And we were unaware the brooms had been purchased for usage at Hogwarts. The Slytherin Quidditch team should not have been allowed to accept the brooms as a gift."

"Sir, Potter got his own broomstick during his first year," Malfoy said.

"Yes, the broomstick had been ordered for me, but I reimbursed the charges when I had the first chance," Harry said. "If the parents of the Slytherin Quidditch team paid the full market value for the Nimbus 2001 racing brooms, they would not have been illegal."

"Mr. Potter, I couldn't have explained it anything better myself," Boner said. "The Nimbus 2001 models will be brought out to be destroyed. And given you're the only occupant of the 1993 Slytherin Quidditch team left at school during this year, you will be suspended for the remainder of the year for playing Quidditch."

Harry thought it was amusing how Malfoy looked shocked beyond belief.

"Suspended…suspended…you can't….." Malfoy said. "My father will…"

"Your father has no power of the Department of Magical Games and Sports," Boner said. "Given the circumstances, had you or anyone else had been injured thanks to those brooms, both you and your father would be facing more serious consequences them your Quidditch suspension. You should be grateful you weren't hurt or no one else was hurt along with them."

Draco was completely incensed beyond all belief. Livid didn't even begin to cover this.

"Who told you about us having the brooms?" Draco demanded.

"A concerned classmate wrote about you having recalled broomsticks," Boner said. "And you should be thankful they did. Given these particular Nimbus models are some of the first on the market, the magic which caused the dangers could kick in."

Umbridge walked up to face Boner.

"Mr. Boner, Mr. Malfoy made an honest mistake," Umbridge said. "I think we can come to an understanding. What if Lucius Malfoy pays a fine?"

"Making Lucius Malfoy pay a fine is not an adequate punishment," Boner said. "And I should remind you the Department of Magical Games and Sports are responsible for the suspension of players, not the Hogwarts High Inquisitor."

Umbridge looked as if she had been slapped in the face with a fish of some sort. Wearing a fish on her face may have been an improvement.

"I've heard of some of the things which had gone on at Hogwarts, which I'm certain the Ministry may have known about, but our department wasn't informed of," Boner said. "Broomsticks getting jinxed, Rogue bludgers, Dementors being allowed in the midst of a Quidditch match, attempted sabotage, cheating which would get you thrown off any Professional Quidditch team, and that's just the tip of the iceberg."

Boner stood up in the face of Umbridge despite the woman's demeanor.

"We're going to be taking a closer look out how things are happening at Hogwarts," Boner said. "Quidditch at Hogwarts will be required to be supervised by both a representative of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, and a DMGS assigned referee. It's time for a tighter ship to be run. Just because magic gives the opportunity for more danger does not mean we are going to embrace it."

"Mr. Boner, I'm afraid you're making a terrible mistake," Umbridge said.

The representative of the Department of Magical Games and Sports stared down at the High Inquisitor for a moment.

"Maybe, I'm making a political mistake," Boner said. "But, it's about time someone takes a closer look and more responsibility regarding the dangers of Quidditch at Hogwarts. The amount of incidents has been piling up and it's out of your jurisdiction. You're merely Fudge's senior undersecretary who has been granted a position of power. Unless you're an expert on proper safety procedures regarding Quidditch and other magical games and sports, you have no jurisdiction over this matter. And no jurisdiction regarding who is allowed to play Quidditch whether it be at a school or professionally for this country. And Fudge will no doubt enlighten you why, if you hasn't already."

Umbridge swallowed in response and nodded.

"Of course, I didn't mean to imply the safety of the students were anything other than my primary concern," Umbridge said. "This is why I took this position in the first place, to ensure all of the students are safe and secure."

Boner took a moment to consider Umbridge and turned his attention to Dumbledore who had turned up.

"Someone will be over to monitor the situation," Boner said.

"I will assure you Hogwarts takes the safety of it's students seriously," Dumbledore said.

"You should consider yourself lucky there has been no fatalities of yet, Headmaster," Boner said. "Otherwise, you would be considered responsibility, along with Mr. Malfoy and his father. I'm astonished a well educated man such as yourself did not know of the Nimbus 2001 recall."

Dumbledore hung his head down for a minute.

"I was unaware," Dumbledore said.

"Well, it is your responsibility to make yourself aware of such things."

There had been whispers of other dangers lurking around the corner at Hogwarts. The Ministry and Dumbledore managed to keep a lid on things. As it was, Boner could only prod in matters in Magical Games and Sports.

Harry could see Umbridge staring at Dumbledore for a moment. It was obvious Umbridge was looking for a way to turn this around on him.

Given some recent evidence pointing towards how Dumbledore handled things, Harry really had no dog in this fight. With anything, they would keep each other distracted because of their political maneuvering and allowed Harry to slip underneath the radar.

* * *

Harry arrived outside of a tapestry on the seventh floor. He consulted the Marauder's Map. Filch was prowling several floors below him and Umbridge was pacing around her office.

He was pretty sure this would be an ideal location for the meetings. Harry screwed his eyes shut when he paced back and forth across the hallway from the tapestry.

' _I need a place where Umbridge or anyone who would ever support her can ever find me.'_

The door appeared. Harry turned the door and opened it up to step into a large classroom.

"Well, this is interesting," Harry said. "Can I have a room where time doesn't pass normally as it does on the outside world?"

Harry smiled with a flash of light. Two clocks appeared in the room. One showed the time which passed inside the room. The other clock showed the time on the outside of the castle.

"How about copies of the contents of the Hogwarts library, including the Restricted section?"

The familiar area shifted and several shelves appeared along with books. Harry walked down the shelves and stepped closer towards the Restricted Section. These books gave the same eerie aura around them.

' _Fascinating,'_ Harry thought. _'This would be a thief's paradise if they could take anything out of the room. I bet they can't though.'_

The time dilation properties of the room made it so Harry doubted anything could be taken from the room. He had a feeling food couldn't be created in the room either. Well, something which looked like food might be created, but it couldn't be edible.

' _One of those rules of Elementary transfiguration,'_ Harry thought. _'If anyone can break the rules of magic, it's going to be me though.'_

Harry sat down on a cushioned chair which rose up off of the ground.

"Give me a copy of everything I need to study to be a Ministry Certified Educational expert."

Harry smiled when several books appeared in front of him.

' _Time to get to work.'_

* * *

Harry bumped into Luna the moment she came around the corner.

"And once again, the Nargles prove to be a harsh mistress," Luna said. "So, how are you this evening, Harry? You aren't back from another Detention, are you?"

"No, believe it or not, it's a free evening, I haven't gotten in trouble for close to a week," Harry said.

"There must be something in the air then, or maybe in the Pumpkin Juice," Luna said. "And I don't mean the anti-Hormone potions out Potions Teacher slips into the pumpkin juice to prevent a bunch of magical users from descending into a meaningless orgy."

Harry raised his eyebrow. Actually, this explained a lot.

"Issue 143 of the Quibbler, if you're interested," Luna said.

"I might actually have to give this one a look," Harry said. "And I'm interested in giving your father a story, if he's willing to take it."

"Oh, do tell," Luna said with a smile.

"I'm willing to give him the exclusive of what happened on the night of third task of the Triwizard Tournament," Harry said.

"Well, a lot of people would not believe the story even if it's in front of their face," Luna said. "Why the Quibbler though?"

"Don't worry, the Quibbler is not the only publication this story will find its way into if I have my say," Harry said to her. "It's just to get the ball rolling."

"Oh, you're up to something nefarious, aren't you?" Luna asked. "Oh, I'm sure Professor Umbridge won't like it."

"And that will make her ban the Quibbler from Hogwarts and try and censor any knowledge," Harry said.

Anyone who was in the press for more than a second knew how making a controversial article which got banned made sure all of the attention was on it.

"So, when can my father expect this article?" Luna asked.

"When does the last issue of the Quibbler hit before the holidays?" Harry asked.

Luna thought for a moment and smiled.

"December 22nd, just in time for the holidays."

Harry smiled.

"And Hogsmeade weekend is a few days before that, perfect," Harry said. "I'll have the interview signed and delivered to your father ready before then."

"Oh, I'm sure he'll be pleased," Luna said. "I'll find a way to get a message to him."

"Remember, Luna, the owl post is monitored by Umbridge and Filch," Harry said.

"Oh, I know, but Daddy and I have our own ways to communicate with other," Luna said. "We're in a dangerous business after all."

"You never saw me," Harry said.

"Saw who?"

Luna turned around and whistled like she didn't see anything. Harry smiled and turned around, catching sight of the other person he wanted to talk about. He was busy unscrewing something.

"You might want to turn it around the other way."

Peeves the Poltergeist spun around and looked at Harry. His eyes widened.

"Well, it's Potty….."

"Peeves, do you really want anyone to know about the great burrito fiasco of 1976?" Harry asked.

Peeves shut his mouth instantly.

"What do you want, Mr. Potter, sir?" Peeves said, in a respectful tone.

"Well, I've been holding this box," Harry said. "And I was wondering if you could hold onto it for me, for a little bit."

Peeves raised his eyebrow.

"I am entrusting you with this box, Peeves," Harry said. "I will be picking it up later. And it most certainly would be a shame if the box was slipped into Dolores Umbridge's office by the end of tomorrow."

"Right, it would be a real shame," Peeves said. "It would be a real shame if Peeves dropped the box accidentally on Umbridge's desk while she is off meeting with the Minister of Magic."

"Yes, and you shouldn't hide it where she can't find it, until the end of her class tomorrow," Harry said.

"Right, Peeves shouldn't do that," Peeves said with a wicked nod.

"And you never saw me," Harry said, slipping Peeves another box. "And here's a little something for your trouble. I suspect you should use it in good health. A little present from a certain pair of twins we know."

Peeves brought into a wicked grin. The moment he looked up, Harry disappeared for the moment.

* * *

Harry thought he did a good job staying out of trouble after a couple of months. Unfortunately, all good things had to come to an end, and Professor Umbridge decided to take great chagrin of a couple of things Harry stated on his essay. She held him back after class to talk to him.

"I don't know if you know this, Mr. Potter, but you're in danger of failing this class."

Harry responded with a raised eyebrow. He acted as if he was surprised.

"You have decided to state an opinion outside of the stated book in one of your essays….."

"Oh, if you wanted me to copy the book without any variation and just spit out what it said, then why even do the essay?" Harry asked. "This class really has gone to hell. This class used to be about critical thinking, and learning…and it's about hearing the rhetoric according to the Ministry's approved manual."

"Mr. Potter, may I remind you your opinion is not valid," Umbridge said.

"I've been the top student in this class for the past two years," Harry said. "And I've seen your Defense Against the Dark Arts grades, Professor….."

"Mr. Potter times have changed, and the Ministry was too lax regarding their standards in those days," Umbridge said.

' _Oooh, I think I got to her.'_

"And you had no right to dig into my past," Umbridge said.

"Well, you're digging into mine in an attempt to bring incriminating information back to your boss," Harry said. "It's only fair we're on even ground."

Umbridge tried not to seem too worried. Potter uncovered her grades at Hogwarts which were strikingly average at best. What else did he find out?

"I actually care about my education, and am not going to have it ruined because the Ministry has an aversion to the truth," Harry said.

Umbridge placed her hands down on the desk and looked at Harry.

"Your opinion doesn't matter to me or this class, this class is not about inviting opinions which are outside of the approval of Ministry Certified Educational experts," Umbridge said. "Which I am, and you're not."

' _Oh you just wait,'_ Harry thought.

"You're not qualified to give your opinion, and that scar on your forehead doesn't give you a license to be an expert on Defense magic," Umbridge said. "Mr. Potter, if you keep this up, you won't have a future, and will not be working at the Ministry."

"Well, that would be a shame," Harry said dryly.

She really thought this would deter him.

Umbridge turned around and noticed a box sitting on her chair. She pulled out her short and stubby wand and tapped it onto the box. The box started to wiggle open.

An ugly looking toad stuck his head out of the box.

"Rabbit."

Umbridge recoiled in horror at the look of her toad. She raised her hand and tried to blast the toad with her wand.

The toad divided into half and now there were two toads standing there. The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher stared at them. One of them jumped on the top of her head.

"You filthy creatures!" Umbridge shouted at the top of her lungs.

The moment this insult passed Umbridge's lips the toad on her head divided into half. There were three toads there. Umbridge cursed the toad.

Instead of blowing up in a shower of blood and guts, the toad divided in half. Umbridge swiped her wand at the toads and caused them to multiply even more.

Harry slowly tilted back in his chair, propped his feet on the chair, and watched the show.

"What have you done?" Umbridge yelled. "Someone get these foul creatures out of my classroom!"

Pop, pop, pop, with each word the toads continued to divide in half until there was a small army of them. They stared up at Umbridge with widened eyes. The foul woman lifted her hand back and stopped.

The toads all launched at her. They had been dog-piled on Umbridge at once.

"Potter!" Umbridge yelled. "You have to help me."

"Professor, I wouldn't know what to do," Harry said. "I'm not a Ministry Certified Magical Expert, therefore I'm not qualified."

Umbridge screamed when the toads started to rain down on her. The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher struggled against the toads which continued to attack her.

"Oooh, naughty Umbridgy having an orgy!"

Peeves the Poltergeist showed up to watch the show and watch the toads continue to hop about to attack Umbridge.

The most pathetic familiar, which was considered a joke by most users of the magical arts, was giving Dolores Umbridge.

"Peeves, be gone!" Umbridge yelled.

"If Professor Umbridge wants a big bang, then Peeves will give it to her."

This entire situation had turned from bad to worse for Umbridge the moment Peeves launched the fireworks. Umbridge recoiled in horror.

"Don't worry Professor Umbridge, I'll find someone to help!" Harry yelled. "If I hurry, I might be able to find someone who is acceptable by the Ministry standards in about…oh five or six hours, if I hurry."

Umbridge's wand had been knocked out of her hand. The toad jumped on the top of her head.

Peeves snuck up behind Umbridge with a firecracker and lit it.

The screams coming from Umbridge indicated to Harry she wouldn't be sitting down without any discomfort for a very long time.

* * *

A bored looking woman sat at the desk at the Ministry of Magic. She worked at one of the most boring jobs in the entire world. The most amusing news coming around the Ministry ended up being the fact Dolores Umbridge was in mental duress after an unfortunate firecracker incident and a plague of toads. It wasn't enough to get her to quit Hogwarts.

The Ministry officials all dreaded the day Umbridge would leave her position at Hogwarts. It meant they would be stuck with her again and they couldn't have that.

"Good morning."

The woman looked up from the desk.

"Yes, may I help you?" she asked in a stiff voice.

"I'm here to take the certification exam to become a Ministry Certified Education Expert.."

The woman looked towards him.

"Name?" the woman asked.

"Harry Potter."

The young man dropped a bag of gold down on the desk. The galleons spilled out onto the desk.

"Well, Mr. Potter, the examination area is through that door," the woman said, not bothering to check whether or not he was the Harry Potter or another imposter. They got about three per week.

Given the amount of money he dropped down, he could be anyone he wanted to be.

* * *

 **To Be Continued.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Part IV:**

* * *

Rita Skeeter spent the last six months pretty much bent with the threat of her status as an Animagus revealed to the Ministry of Magic. Given she ruffled some rather important feathers during her time as a writer, Rita was certain she would be locked up for an extremely long time if they found out. Granted, not everything she wrote made it to paper. Several of her more interesting pieces had been hacked to pieces and put back out there in the wrong way. She was allowed to criticize the practices of several people. Others, she wasn't.

The current Hogwarts High Inquisitor was one of the women who were above her poison pen. Rita had a few choice words about her which never made it to the paper.

She had been summoned here by a certain individual, who said he would have a story which could respark her career and change the world. Rita was intrigued, and also suspicious. If it was, what she thought it was, she knew the Daily Prophet would never print it. Fudge and his cronies had some sort of leverage over the Daily Prophet Board of Directors. Rita had yet to figure out what this may be though.

The figure turned up at the table she found. Much to Rita's lack of surprise, she noticed Harry Potter.

"You know, I'm surprised Dolores Umbridge hasn't driven you out of Hogwarts yet," Rita said.

Harry responded with a brisk smile when he sat down in front of Rita.

"Oh, I'm sure she's as surprised as you," Harry said. "And I'm still here and still fighting….."

"And you're still claiming He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is back," Rita said. "I'm sure you've read what the Ministry has mandated about you. The smear campaign which is going on…a bunch of low-rent hacks who I'm astonished who know one end of the quill for another."

Rita grabbed over and took a long drink.

"They've done a number on you," Rita said.

"At first, they have, but the Ministry is overplaying their hand," Harry said. "Each day I've stood up to Umbridge, I've managed to unravel a bit of their plan. I'm sure they're keeping their failures out of the paper though."

Rita smiled with a nod.

"So, tell me, what do you think of Dolores Umbridge?" Harry asked.

"I think she's a very dangerous woman and I'd be a fool to cross her," Rita said. "There have been people who have gone against her at the Ministry, who had to resign, or they were fired from the Ministry, in disgrace. She always finds something, every single time."

"You never did answer my question," Harry said.

"If you want my honest opinion?" Rita asked. Harry prompted for her to continue. "I think she's one of the worst cancers going through the Ministry. I might have embellished on certain details for purposes of creative license….."

Harry frowned and coughed. Rita paused for a moment.

"This campaign steps over a line I won't cross," Rita said.

While he believed Rita loathed Umbridge, Harry wasn't going to let her off of the look this easily.

"It was your article which got the ball rolling," Harry said. "Don't think you're completely innocent in this Rita. You were the one who inferred I was dangerous and unbalanced."

"Well, if you truly were, I'd be terrified right now," Rita said. "And you have to be, if you're going to stand up against Dolores Umbridge."

"From a certain perspective, perhaps," Harry said.

The pause between the two of them followed. Rita took another long drink and made sure her eyes locked firmly onto Harry's.

"There's not a single person in the Ministry who likes Dolores Umbridge, many only tolerate her presence," Rita said. "She's savvy, good at what she does, and good at finding blackmail. And she'll find it on you…."

Rita paused for a long moment and looked at Harry over the edge of her glasses.

"Fudge might leave if you're telling the truth, but Umbridge will find a way," Rita said. "The only way to take care of Umbridge is to….and I'm not advocating you do anything illegal. Such words would be a violation of my ethics as a journalist."

Harry snorted. Rita having journalist ethics, there was a good one.

"Why do you want my help?" Rita asked. "Even if I did write your side of the story, the Daily Prophet would never say anything. Umbridge has them by the throat, and the Ministry can void their distribution deal."

"So the Prophet only exists to be the Ministry's only personal propaganda rag," Harry said. "I'm guessing Umbridge knows something the Board of Directors doesn't want to be out in public."

Rita was glad Harry came around to the same conclusion.

"Maybe if I can find what Umbridge has on them, I can counter her somehow," Harry said.

"Yes, because we know how adept at blackmail you are, Mr. Potter," Rita said, unable to keep the scorn out of her voice.

"Rita, if you didn't spy on me in your illegal Animagus form, I wouldn't have had to blackmail you," Harry said. "Now, you're going to make up for it. You do me this one favor, and we'll part ways."

"You're asking me to do you one favor which could get me in hot water with the Ministry," Rita said.

"You're afraid of her, aren't you?"

Rita sat bolt straight up at his words. The woman's eyes widened and mouth curled up into one of the more obvious frowns possible.

"Yes, and for good reason," Rita said.

Harry wasn't convinced. He did wonder how deep this situation went back.

"I'm sure you've attempted to find something to gain some leverage over her," Harry said.

Rita sighed at this particular point. She didn't look like a hard-nosed journalist, rather someone who was defeated and frustrated.

"Any information regarding Umbridge which is out there is strictly regulated," Rita said.

"She received a Dreadful on her Defense Against the Dark Arts OWLs," Harry said without missing a beat. "It wasn't easy to find this out, and it took a long time for me to find out about it."

The fact the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher and the supposed Ministry educational expert didn't pass the Ordinary Wizarding Levels for the class she taught spurred Rita's interest.

"How did you find out?" Rita asked. "No one has been able to find out something like that."

"Rita, would you betray the confidence of a source?" Harry asked.

He tracked down this one scrap of information and it cost him a pretty Galleon to get his source to part with it. It was completely authentic though.

"Never would have considered it," Rita said. She took a moment to regard Harry and frowned.

"If you're not willing to help me, then just say so," Harry said. "I would have liked to think there's a small part of you who remembers why they got into journalism and had not been beaten down by the Ministry and political bullshit. Perhaps you don't have the heart to actually write something that will change the world. Instead, you coast up your reputation. So, I guess you are just some hack who can't cut it any more. You're not the same woman who covered the Death Eaters trials all those years ago when she was a hungry young reporter."

Harry almost had Rita hook, line, and sinker. She was getting more annoyed by the second.

"You're nothing but a Ministry pawn now," Harry said. "They say jump and you say how high. It's pretty pathetic when you think about it. A young ambitious reporter is only capable of writing the gossip which is barely worth lining my owl's cage."

Rita finally snapped into position. One could tell in an instant Harry had pushed most of the right buttons.

"I'll do it," Rita said.

"Good, I'm glad, perhaps there's still something left in you," Harry said.

"I don't know how you're going to distribute it," Rita said.

"Leave the details to me," Harry said. "I need to you to write this in the exact way I want it as well."

Harry paused for a moment.

"Sharpen your poison pen, Ms. Skeeter. We have work to do."

Rita smiled. She had a spark she had not had in years. If that rotten hag was going to go down in flames, it was so much the better.

* * *

"So, she took a bit of convincing," Harry said.

"I'm sure she did. And I'm sure you convinced her of it by hitting her right in the ego."

"Rita did have a bit of an ego, and she thinks a lot of herself," Harry said. "She can spin a story where it make people question everything they thought you know."

"And given how one article turned a lot of people against you, you're hoping to do the same against the Ministry."

"Yes," Harry said, with a chuckle. "Live by the sword and die by the sword."

Harry thought one could consider what he was doing to be a bit dirty, taking advantage of how easily the sheep could be swayed.

"When do you think she's going to break?"

"I don't know," Harry said. "She's a fanatic and I expect her to redouble her efforts to discredit and drive me from Hogwarts."

The incident with the frogs caused Umbridge to be humiliated. Harry knew she was one nudge away from insisting to Fudge she had her own private security force or something along those lines. Perhaps some goon squad to protect her from the dangerous, he figured it was inevitable.

"So, are you ready to go?"

"Yes," Harry said with a smile. "Took a bit longer than I thought it would."

"So, I forgot to ask," she said. "How did your accreditation exam go?"

"So easy I'm surprised there aren't more Ministry certified magical educations," Harry said. "I'll know the results after the first of the year. Now, I have it in the bag, I'm pretty sure."

The day after Hogsmeade was the beginning of break. Harry thought being away from Umbridge for a few weeks would do him some good.

* * *

Dolores Umbridge prepared herself for a nice holiday away from Hogwarts and the Ministry. The worst part of her time was Harry Potter was still at Hogwarts. She would change this though with a fresh batch of educational decrees.

A burst of flames came from the other side of the fireplace. Umbridge could see Cornelius Fudge's face sticking out from the other end. He looked terrified.

"Dolores, you're not going to believe this!" Fudge yelled. "You're not going to believe what Potter did….did you…he…..did…."

The stammering wreck which was the Minister of Magic caused Dolores to grow a fair bit agitated at first.

"Minister, take a deep breath and calm down," Dolores said. "Potter is away on holiday."

The one thing Dolores neglected to tell the Minister was the fact she didn't quite know where Harry Potter was.

"It came out today, I saw some people reading it at the Ministry," Cornelius said. "The Quibbler."

Umbridge blinked for a few seconds.

"The ragsheet of Lovegood's?" Umbridge asked. "Did he write an article about Potter secretly being a princess of fairy unicorns again or something?"

Cornelius misread her sarcasm. A copy of the Quibbler shot out of the fireplace with Harry Potter's picture on it. Umbridge took the magazine in her hand and frowned.

It had Harry Potter on the front cover with the words "The True Story About the Night I Saw He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named" returned. Umbridge started to flip through to the page of it. She read an article detailing the night of the third task of the Triwizard Tournament and details of the extent the Ministry tried to cover it up. And somehow, there was proof inside the Quibbler.

"This will blow over, Minister," Umbridge said. "This will be barely a blip on the radar over the Christmas holidays."

"I hope you're right, Dolores," Fudge said. "He's….he's given a lot of details…..what if….."

"Only a further example of his delusions," Umbridge said. "Don't worry, Minister, once Educational Decree Number Thirty comes out, I'll have the support I need."

Fudge started muttering about something. Umbridge read the article with disdain. Potter may have spoken the truth, Umbridge honestly didn't care.

There was a fine line regarding what happened and what was the truth. Regardless of whether or not, Potter spoke the truth, it wasn't what happened according to the Ministry. Therefore, it was irrelevant.

Umbridge dropped the magazine in the fire where it belonged. Harry Potter would pay for the disrespect he gave to the Ministry of Magic.

The Ministry employee's double take was obvious the moment she looked into the fire. It was almost as if Harry Potter's picture slowly laughed at her when it slowly had been burned by the fire. Umbridge coughed for a moment and bent over at her desk to pick up her belongings.

' _I'm going to need a vacation,'_ Dolores thought, frustration obvious when it dripped from her voice.

* * *

Harry smiled when he received what he had been looking forward to, the day before he returned to Hogwarts. He had passed the Ministry accreditation exams and now was a certified Ministry Educational Expert. It really wasn't worth much, but it just proved anything Umbridge did, he could do and he could do it better.

Stacks and stacks of mail had been received during the winter holidays. Some of it rather good, and encouraging for Harry, which made him happy. A few hate mails and death threats had been thrown into the batch, including a few letters which told him he was delusional and said he was a menace to society.

Harry spent ten years being told he was a menace to society, in slightly more creative ways, and every summer since he had been to Hogwarts, so really, Harry wasn't really bothered.

Still, this Ministry Certified Deal was as good as his NEWTs, even not better. Harry really didn't need to return to Hogwarts, per say. He only wanted to do so because he wanted to see Umbridge be driven out of Hogwarts tarred and feathered, and on a splintery rail.

In the figurative sense of the word, maybe in the literal one as well, as Harry had not been too picky.

Sunday evening would be fairly interesting. Harry suspected Umbridge would come to him, baring her teeth and trying to act like the baddest bitch in the room. She would no down threaten banning him from Hogsmeade, throw him into detention, and likely attempt to ban the Quibbler.

There was no detention which would break Harry, it wasn't like he hadn't snuck into Hogsmeade unauthorized before, and banning the Quibbler would likely drive sales through the roof.

Plus, Harry had an alternative plan to make sure the article reached everyone in the Wizarding World.

* * *

Harry arrived back to Hogwarts and no sooner did he step three feet inside, Dolores Umbridge marched towards him with her hands on her hips.

"Mr. Potter, a word if you please," Umbridge said.

"Well, I'm here, Professor, so we can have that world," Harry said. "I wouldn't want to miss a nice feast my first night back, and I doubt you wouldn't either."

Umbridge's lips curled into a frown the second she stared down at Harry.

"How dare you?" Umbridge asked.

"Mmm, you're going to have to be more specific," Harry said. "I have no idea what exactly you're mad at me about."

This statement from Harry got Umbridge thinking and properly paranoid he was up to something. Several students walked in just in time to enjoy the spectacle between the two of them.

"You know full well what I'm mad at you about, Potter!" Umbridge yelled. She stared down at him for a moment and this caused Harry to frown.

"Professor, as far as you know, Dumbledore has taught me to read minds," Harry said.

Umbridge almost fell over.

"Albus Dumbledore has been illegally teaching you Legilimency!" Umbridge almost crowded in delight.

Harry casually looked up at Umbridge.

"Did I say that?" Harry asked. "Professor Umbridge, you know what happens when you assume, don't you?"

The students around them started to laugh.

"I'm talking about that pack of lies you gave to the Quibbler," Umbridge said in her lowest and most dangerous voice.

"Oh, the Quibbler, you're worried about that, are you?" Harry asked. "If it's such a pack of lies, why do you need to jump me the moment I get into Hogwarts?"

"You did not have permission to give….."

"Oh now a private citizen requires permission from the Ministry to talk to the press," Harry said. "Is the Ministry afraid of a little freedom of the press? Shouldn't I be allowed to tell my side of the story?"

Umbridge fumed beyond all belief. Harry could tell in an instant she was about ready to lose her mind. He anticipated this seconds before she did.

She mentally counted to ten and took a deep breath.

"You're banished from Hogsmeade, and you are lucky not to be expelled," Umbridge said.

"Oh, well, that's a real shame," Harry said. "If the interview was so bad, why do you have your knickers in a twist over it? Unless the Ministry is afraid people can't think for themselves."

"Detention, Mr. Potter, for the next month, every night," Umbridge said. She turned around and looked at the students who were gawking. "There's nothing to see here."

Harry could tell she was getting close to slipping off of the brink.

"Yep, because I think we've all seen plenty," Harry said. "The Ministry wants to restrict who can speak to the press. Makes you think they have something to hide. Or maybe they think the people can't think for themselves

"The Ministry has every right to tell the people what they should think, you obnoxious brat!" Umbridge yelled.

Every single person gasped and frowned. Umbridge realized just then she had said this in front of the niece of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

She took several long breaths, turned around, and left, no doubt off to pass another educational decree.

Harry watched her. Umbridge was this close to snapping. If she actually hexed him, Harry would have cause to file a complaint to the Board of Governors and get her removed from Hogwarts. Fudge would either have to back her or risk losing favor with the Wizengamot, something

' _Gotten to.'_

* * *

Educational Decree Number Thirty-Five had prohibited the Quibbler from passing through the walls of Hogwarts. On an unrated note, the Quibbler received their highest sales in quite some time, which made a certain Mr. Lovegood pleased as one might in fact expect.

Harry had a plan. Umbridge really thought she had him. Harry had a plan. It was one which would take a month, maybe two to completely fulfill.

"So, she's really desperate now?"

"You should have seen her," Harry said. "For someone who is pushing the narrative about how dangerous and unstable I am…."

"You forgot delusional."

"Yes, I forgot delusional, I'm not sure how I could have ever forgotten delusional," Harry said, a smile spreading over his face when he leaned forward. "Anyway for someone who is pushing this particular narrative, you'd be pretty surprised how unstable she's making herself look like in the process."

"You've gotten to her, haven't you?"

Harry smiled and placed his thumb and forefinger together in response. He motioned for his companion to follow his look.

"Just a little bit," Harry said. "Controversy creates cash. When someone forbids people read something, they want to read it."

"You'd think she'd know that as a Ministry official."

Harry laughed in amusement. He reached into the shadows and grabbed her hand. After a firm squeeze, the two released each other from their grip.

"One would think she knew that," Harry said. "Then again, what the Ministry doesn't know these days could fill several books."

Umbridge was so obsessed with maintaining order, the moment her entire world had been shattered, she couldn't handle it. Harry was beginning to think the Ministry couldn't think outside of the box and when someone upset their perfect order it was difficult.

* * *

Dolores Umbridge thought this would be the end of the crisis regarding the Quibbler. The next week, several owls appeared at Hogwarts, carrying copies of the Daily Prophet. Umbridge snatched the paper from the owl and she nearly choked on her morning tea.

That damning article and Harry Potter's face stared at from in front of her again. Information regarding a Ministry cover-up, but the article looked to be extended, and also detailed whispers of the Ministry using a forbidden artifact in detentions to their students.

"Is there a problem, Professor Umbridge?" Dumbledore asked.

"You know perfectly well what the problem is, Headmaster," Umbridge said.

Dumbledore took the paper.

"Well, that's another embarrassing loss for the Chudley Cannons," Dumbledore said, reading the paper. "I didn't see you as a fan though so I don't….."

"Read it, right here!" Umbridge yelled.

"Oh, look a sale on chocolate frogs!" Dumbledore yelled. "Yes, thank you for pointing it out, Professor Umbridge, that's absolutely splendid."

Umbridge had no idea if Dumbledore was acting senile on purpose or if it just came to him naturally.

"Minerva, look at this," Umbridge said. "Can you believe he did this?"

"What, the Cannons latest loss?" McGonagall asked. "I'm not aware how this is anything other than common place."

"This is…Potter….."

"Harry Potter caused the Chudley Cannons to lose?" Flitwick asked. "With all due respect, Professor Umbridge, I think they are perfectly capable of such a spectacular and humiliating loss on their own."

Umbridge turned around. Did no one see the paper? Umbridge rose to her feet and nearly ran into Draco Malfoy.

"I beg your pardon, Professor," Draco said.

He only treated her with respect due to her position. Personally, Draco couldn't stand the bitch, and the sooner she would get ran out of Hogwarts, the better off.

"Mr. Malfoy, surely you see it," Umbridge said.

"Yes, the Chudley Cannons lost!" Draco yelled, doing a fist pump. "I'm going to go rub it into the Weasel's face."

Umbridge's mouth opened and shut. She could see Harry Potter standing there. Umbridge walked over, almost storming across the Great Hall.

"Don't look now," Ginny muttered in Harry's ear. "Horrific Pink Toad at Twelve O'Clock."

Harry turned to face Umbridge who stood across from him.

"Potter, what's the meaning of this?" Umbridge asked, practically shoving the paper underneath Harry's nose.

Harry stared at the paper for about ten seconds before he responded.

"Well, it looks like the Cannons have suffered their worst loss yet," Harry said. "And here I thought their defense couldn't get any worse."

Harry watched Umbridge turn around and she looked at the paper .The same article everyone saw regarding the Chudley Cannons losing flashed in front of her.

"The article was there, I know it was, Potter," Umbridge said.

"What article, Professor?" Harry asked.

"You know what article," Umbridge said.

"I don't know what you could be talking about," Harry said. "Maybe you're not cut out for this job….you know how people around here are about people who see things which aren't there."

Umbridge turned around. She saw the article. She knew she saw the article. No one else saw the article, but it was there.

' _I'm going to have to take drastic action.'_

* * *

"Umbridge wants to see you tonight," Filch said. "Guess, you got lucky, didn't you?"

"Oh, I guess it just means you're going to have to clean the castle all on your own," Harry said. "Try not to mess up the good work I've done."

Harry knew right now something was up. Umbridge was going to lash back, he knew it.

' _It's a trap,'_ Harry thought.

Harry knew it was a trap. You had to step into a trap to bait another one. He walked into the room, legs heavy. Harry walked forward with a quick and solid stride.

He walked down the hallway to Umbridge's office. He could see about four people concealed in the shadows and likely there were a few more inside Umbridge's office. The Ministry must have been extremely desperate for this to work.

Harry raised his hand and knocked on the door.

"Yes, Mr. Potter, it's unlocked."

Harry smiled and took half of a step inside the office with Umbridge waiting for him. She looked like the cat which ate the canary.

"Well, Mr. Potter, I'm sure you're wondering what you're doing here."

"The thought did cross my mind," Harry said.

"You're going away this time, Mr. Potter," Umbridge said. "I've signed the order and you will be expelled."

"And Dumbledore's going to let you do this, is he?" Harry asked.

Umbridge responded with a bright smile and stared him down. Harry figured this was going to happen.

"Oh, you've got him out of the school, didn't you?" Harry asked.

"Yes, Mr. Potter, and now it's your turn," Umbridge said. "I suggest you surrender your wand and come quietly."

Harry figured in an instant Umbridge thought Dumbledore was the one pulling the strings with what Harry was doing. He had one more nasty surprise for her.

"Oh, I'll just hand my wand over and come with the Ministry," Harry said. "And I'll never be able to be seen again."

"Get your hands in the air, Potter!"

Several Aurors stepped out of the shadows. They pointed their wands at Harry. Harry smiled and rose his hand into the air, casually pushing in a button on the watch he wore.

"Well, you got me," Harry said. "Woe is me…..the Ministry has won….or maybe not."

The Aurors pointed their wands. One of the leader Aurors pointed his wand at Harry, directly aimed towards him.

"Potter, relinquish your wand," Harry said.

"Look up in the sky."

One of the Aurors turned his head to the side.

"It's not a bird," one of them muttered.

"It's not some Muggle aircraft," another Auror said.

"It's my girlfriend," Harry said.

A blur shot into the room, snatched Harry off of the ground, and flew him out into the opposite direction as fast as she could go.

"STOP THEM!" Umbridge howled.

She was just pissing in the wind as Harry Potter, along with his accomplice, had already been on the other side of the planet by this point.

* * *

Umbridge won a battle and lost another. She managed to maneuver Dumbledore out and she would be the Hogwarts Headmistress. Potter was gone, even though he wasn't rotting away in Azkaban as the Dementors sucked away every bit.

' _At least I won't have to see Potter's face ever again,'_ Umbridge thought.

The moment she passed into the Great Hall, Umbridge noticed at least eighty percent of the student body sitting at their tables with their heads down. Umbridge raised her hand into the air and tried to get their attention.

"HEM, HEM!"

The heads of all of the students shot up. They all wore Harry Potter masks which caused Umbridge to recoil in horror. His face was everywhere. She was now the Headmistress, she had the ultimate authority over this school.

"I command you to…"

Owls shot into the Great Hall, and dropped the Daily Prophet down on the table. Only it wasn't the Daily Prophet as she knew it. She looked at the headline on the page.

"Harry Potter escapes Ministry of Magic Ambush, Is Umbridge's days numbered as well?"

Several eyes found their way towards Umbridge. She crumpled the Daily Prophet into her hand. This was not how she wanted her morning to be. Dumbledore was gone, so was Potter, and her authority was supposed to be firmly established.

Several owls shot into the Great Hall. Filch chased after them, looking rather comical.

"Hey, get back here!" Filch yelled, swinging a broomstick like a mad man in an attempt to knock the owls from the sky.

The owls dropped down several red envelopes which started to smoke. A couple of them dropped a more personal present on top of Umbridge's head which caused her to recoil in disgust.

 **"HOW DARE YOU ATTACK HARRY POTTER!"**

Several howlers went off at once which made the most annoying sound known to wizardkind. The new Headmistress turned and fled the Great Hall. She needed the bottle in her office cabinet right about now.

Umbridge rushed up the stairs, entered her office and collapsed down on her desk. An urgent message had been waiting for her. Umbridge recoiled in terror, before realizing it was an official Ministry of Magic memo.

The memo had been opened up, and the contents inside were not to Umbridge's liking.

* * *

 **To Be Continued.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Part V:**

* * *

Umbridge knew receiving an official Ministry of Magic memo especially in the gold envelope was a bad thing under any circumstances. Receiving one from the desk of one Amelia Bones also caused Umbridge a great amount of dismay. The Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher, Headmitress, Hogwarts High Inquistor, and Senior Under Secretary of the Minister of Magic took the envelope in her hand. The woman's hand started to shake when she lifted it up.

The information flashed in front of Umbridge's face like a taunting beacon. The woman almost dropped the envelope on the table and took in a fairly deep breath when she looked over it.

It didn't just come from the Ministry of Magic. It came from the office of Amelia Bones. One of the last people from the Ministry Umbridge wanted to pay her a visit. Umbridge had tried to be polite to the woman's niece, and treat her to rest. If young Miss Bones mentioned something to her aunt, Umbridge would be getting paid a visit.

The Hogwarts Head Mistress Defense Against the Dark Arts Senior Undersecretary High Inquisitor placed a hand on the tip of her nose. She told Cornelius this might happened. She should have been allowed to issue a decree which prevented the students from leaving Hogwarts over the holidays, for security concerns.

Cornelius thought it would raise too many red flags. Dolores didn't know, but the alternative was bad. She would have to assert her authority, now and in the worst way.

The owls must have left the Great Hall by now. The last howler must have been dropped off. Umbridge lifted herself up to a stance.

She thought with Potter gone, her authority would have been respected. Umbridge commanded authority, and she would make sure every single one of those brats folded into line.

* * *

There was a chaotic scene in the Great Hall. Chants of "Free Harry Potter" echoed throughout the Great Hall. The students, all of them dressed in Harry Potter masks. The people in the school who didn't take part of this rebellion could do nothing other than scowl.

Umbridge stepped into the Great Hall. Seconds later, she had been almost run into Professor Minerva McGonagall.

"Headmistress," Minerva said with a slight nod. "Until you can get this situation in order, I'm afraid we must retire to the Great Hall."

"Surely, you can help me get them in order," Umbridge said.

"Oh, I wouldn't want any of them to assume my authority or the authority of my fellow teachers is higher than the Hogwarts High Inquisitor," Minerva said.

"So, we'll just get out of your way, and let you do what you do best," Flitwick said.

All of the teachers passed them. One of the leaders in the Harry Potter mask stood up on the table. Umbridge stepped into the Great Hall.

"All of you move those ridiculous masks and….."

"No, we won't remove them, and we won't be silenced!"

Some of them stood on top of one of the tables. Other of them made their way to the ground.

"We are the students of Hogwarts, and we feel our education has been undermined thanks to the Ministry of Magic meddling in it!" one of them yelled. "We will be represented!"

"Now, listen here we'll…"

"Are you going to throw us all in Detention, Professor Umbridge?" one of them asked. "You're the only one who can oversee detention and do you really want all of us trapped inside a room with you, with no way out?"

Umbridge thought this was not going as planned. She needed to restore order before Amelia Bones showed up. It would not be good for her if Bones showed up.

"You've come here, and you've tried to silence Harry Potter!" one of them yelled. "And some of us might not have believed him at first. But you've proven the Ministry has something to hide!"

Several of them pointed their wands at Umbridge. The woman took a step out.

"This is treason against the Ministry, I'll have you all expelled for this!" Umbridge yelled.

"The Ministry committed treason against the people who they were supposed to serve first, by acting in their own interests," one of them said.

Umbridge turned to a small group of students, one of them Draco Malfoy. Malfoy looked from Umbridge and the group of angry Potter mask wearing students standing on the table.

"Professor, it's your job to get them into line," Malfoy said, turning around and scurrying to the Dungeon, his fellow Junior Death Eaters following behind him.

Umbridge stood alone against several dozen students.

"The Ministry is coming soon," Umbridge said to them.

"We don't recognize the authority of the Ministry when we are not properly represented," the ring leader said. "And you should learn to understand your actions have consequences."

Umbridge lifted her wand towards them.

"You hex one of us, and two of us will come back at you harder!" one of them yelled.

The loud chants of them yelling "Free Harry Potter!" could be heard. Umbridge took another step back and turned to the side. She realized she had no authority and no back up here. Hogwarts was underneath a rebellion. She could attempt to subdue some of them.

"Please, calm down, we can have a discussion about this," Umbridge said. "All of you lower your wands and we can discuss. I want to help you, you are the future…"

The leader of the group scoffed. The echo of frustration came from her.

"You think we're the future, yet you do everything to prevent the future to happening," the leader said. "And if you want a discussion, why are you trying to go towards the nearest exit?"

The shell-shocked Ministry official noticed the doors having blown shut and trapped her inside.

"So, Professor, are you willing to have a discussion?" the ringleader asked. "Or is the Ministry going to stick their head in the sand and pretend nothing is wrong like they always do when something contradicts their official word."

Umbridge never thought she would say this, but she hoped Amelia Bones would get here soon. She needed to be saved by this ravenous mob. Witches and wizards thinking for themselves and not going along with the Ministry word caused her to go out of her depth.

They would all pay for this treason.

* * *

Cornelius Fudge heard news regarding the inspection of Hogwarts and needless to say, he was not in the best mood. He had been lead to believe all of his troubles would go away, if Dumbledore and Potter were taken care of. His troubles didn't just vanish in a puff of smoke, far from it. No, the troubles, they were just beginning. The Minister of Magic rushed out to hopefully do what he did best in a crisis. Perform some level of damage control.

Thankfully, he managed to stop her the moment before she entered the fire place. Amelia Bones was about ready to step through the Floo to the other side. Fudge stepped closer towards her with a heavy breath.

"May I help you, Minister?" Amelia asked in a calm voice.

"The situation at Hogwarts….there's no need for you to get involved," Fudge said. "I'm sure I can send someone to check up on things…."

"No, Minister, I'd feel a lot more at ease if I had gone to the school and checked things myself," Amelia said. "I've heard enough to make me concerned about how Madam Umbridge is performing at her job."

"Now, Amelia, while I've heard some concerns, you can't let them overwhelm you," Fudge said. "Any complaints about Dolores are nothing, but rumors and innuendo, there are always going to be dissidents who are going to question everything the Ministry is doing. You have to let these things go, and think about maintaining the piece."

Fudge knew Amelia was only cool and businesslike to them because they needed to work together to keep the Ministry running. He also knew it was important to keep himself in her good graces. The Bones name held a lot of power and prestige, and she was one of the few who could call a vote of no confidence and make Fudge fear for his job.

"You decided to run a smear campaign on Harry Potter because you didn't like what he said, and you let the wrong people get in your ear and convince you to keep it up," Amelia said.

"You can't believe the boy's stories….."

"I'm not sure what I believe, given how you stonewalled the investigation, and broke proper evidence protocol by having the Dementor's kiss performed on a witness," Amelia said. "If Potter was telling false stories, it would be up for an investigation to decide. And there's still the matter of his trial. "

"Now, Amelia, I'm the Minister of Magic, and….."

"You're only there because people have backed you, Minister," Amelia said. "If Dolores is doing her job as she should, you have nothing to fear."

Fudge heard Dolores's weekly reports about the troubles she had with Potter, and her inability to keep him in line. And his attempts to cause trouble at every single moment, and to be honest, there were more letters and howlers coming to Fudge's office now than ever before. Not to mention the Unspeakables breathing down his neck regarding a quill they were studying going missing. Fudge didn't know what happened, but the quill had been returned back in September, wasn't it?

The goblins would get enraged, well Fudge didn't care what those foul creatures thought.

Much to his agitation, Amelia Bones decided not to listen to his advice and leave this investigation alone. Fudge didn't know what to do right now. He could see everything turning into a nightmare before his very eyes.

"Minister! We have a problem!"

Those were words the Minister of Magic hated to hear no matter what. His head turned a fraction of an inch to the side and noticed a Ministry official hurrying towards him. Fudge's lips curled into a frown and he responded with a nod.

"Twelve Death Eaters had been broken out of Azkaban."

Fudge realized this situation had gone from really bad to extremely putrid in a snap. How could everything have gone so wrong? The Minister didn't really know to be honest and it was causing him a headache.

"Minister…. I need you to sign this…"

"Oh, yeah, right, of course."

Fudge scrawled his signature piece of paper without really paying attention to what he was signing or even bothering to read it in the first place. He had more pressing matters to worry about.

A young woman with blonde hair and glasses, dressed in the official Ministry of Magic robes, smiled, having gotten the signature she needed.

He was right, Fudge was a complete moron.

* * *

Umbridge found herself backed against the wall. She needed an opening where she could escape and call for help from the Ministry of Magic. The ringleader bounded on Umbridge.

An owl came into the Great Hall again. After the fiasco at Breakfast, Umbridge jumped almost a half of an inch in the air. The students dropped back.

The envelope wasn't red this time. Umbridge wouldn't have been bombarded by a howler which would cause her head to ache. The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher extended a hand out and touched the envelope.

"Open it, Professor."

The taunting encouragement made Umbridge really wish she could make all of these children pay. They were nothing, but a lot of nasty trouble makers.

"Bones is coming, and you are going to be in trouble now," Umbridge said.

She could tell Amelia Bones a group of students attacked her and swiped her wand.

"Oh, we are, aren't we?" one of them asked. "Maybe you'll get thrown out of Hogwarts."

Umbridge scowled when staring at them. The doors of the Great Hall opened up and Amelia Bones stepped inside. Umbridge turned towards Amelia and gave a weak smile.

"Thank Morgana you're here, Amelia," Umbridge said. "I don't know what happened, but…they've tried to attack me."

Amelia took a moment to survey Umbridge.

"Could all of you please leave the Great Hall, so I can have a word with Professor Umbridge?"

All of the students turned around and departed from the Great Hall. Umbridge turned from the departing students towards Amelia.

"You say they tried to attack you?" Amelia asked.

"Well, they refused to listen to my orders," Umbridge said a couple of seconds later. "It must have been Potter…."

"Harry Potter wasn't here," Amelia said. "I understand you tried to have him detained the other night."

Umbridge didn't like where this was going and for good reasons. Amelia's peering eyes locked onto her caused a few seconds to pass.

"Yes," Umbridge said. "I thought he was working with Dumbledore to stage a rebellion of students, and….it turns out I was right. There was a rebellion with students tonight, and they tried to attack me."

Amelia could see where Umbridge was trying to go with this one. She knew how the woman worked up close and personal.

"Well, Dolores, it appears Hogwarts is in a state of anarchy," Amelia said.

"Yes, I'm going to need protection," Umbridge said. "I want a full Auror guard arranged so I can walk safely in the school without any threat of attack."

"Sorry, Dolores, I'm afraid I can't do it."

Umbridge would have spit something out had she been in the process of drinking it. Her gaze locked onto Amelia Bones and a fair amount of time passed.

"Why wouldn't you, why can't you?" Umbridge asked. "Is my safety not important?"

Amelia managed to remain professional despite the personal opinion she had against this woman and the problems she had against this woman.

"The safety of anyone is who feels threatened is of the utmost performance," Amelia said. "However, we are short on Aurors, and we have none of them to spare….especially after the recent breakout of Azkaban."

Umbridge's face turned extremely pale when she looked towards Amelia.

"What do you mean by Azkaban breakout?" Umbridge asked.

"Twelve Death Eaters broke out," Amelia said. "It's rather odd, they have broken out."

"It must have been Black," Umbridge said.

Amelia thought this was the narrative the Ministry was going with, blaming Sirius Black for the break out of Azkaban. Of course, there were holes wide enough to fly a broomstick through. There were a lot of holes with how the entire Black investigation was, although this couldn't one hundred percent be laid on Fudge and his staff.

"Regardless of who was behind it, there's a huge manhunt for them," Amelia said. "Therefore, we don't have any Aurors to spare. We may have if the funding for the department had not gotten cut."

Umbridge took a few seconds to recall the reasons for this. She had pushed for the Auror Department to get their funding cut, because she felt there were no need for them, during times for peace. Now, the Ministry had no Aurors to spare.

"Can't you do something to discourage them from rebelling against me?" Umbridge asked.

"Are you trying to tell me you can't handle your job at Hogwarts?" Amelia asked. "You are free to leave at any time, Dolores, if you can't handle it."

Umbridge absolutely refused to admit she couldn't handle something.

"Well, I do think you're spreading yourself way too thin, and I would hate to see you lose your mind because you can't handle the responsibilities," Amelia said.

"I can handle them, Madam Bones."

"There's plenty of evidence with disagrees with me," Amelia said. "There are some people who aren't cut out to teach, even if they are a Ministry Certified Magical Expert."

The slight from Amelia to Umbridge was not missed at all. The woman was too professional to really tell anyone what she thought of Umbridge. The disapproval Amelia Bones directed towards Umbridge pretty much could be read between the lines.

"My opinion is you may not be quite cut up for the job," Amelia said. "But, I'm willing to give you an opportunity to prove so differently."

"Madam Bones, with all due respect, you can't release me," Umbridge said. "The agreement between myself and Cornelius completely states…"

"You can only leave this position by your own choice, or through incapacitation or death," Amelia said. "Yes, I'm aware of it."

"I'm glad you're aware of it," Umbridge said for a few seconds later.

The strong battle of wills between both witches going back and forth continued to escalate. Umbridge's spike of confidence rose when she knew Amelia Bones would like nothing better than to see her out of Hogwarts, and likely follow the Ministry.

"However, given your added responsibilities as Hogwarts Headmistress, I can strongly recommended an assistant be assigned to you, to help handle some of your duties as High Inquisitor," Amelia said.

Umbridge considered her words for a few moments. To be perfectly honest, Umbridge thought it would be a good idea to have some assistance. Another set of eyes and ears to help find rebellion and to seek out trouble makers.

"Yes, it may work," Umbridge said. "And I'm certain you already have someone in mind."

"Yes, I've searched long and hard for a Ministry Certified Educational expert which would be more than qualified to be your assistant," Amelia said.

"Oh, you've already have someone in mind?" Umbridge asked, looking at Amelia with a long look. "I am surprised you've already given this matter some thought."

"Well, I feel you need some help, given your responsibilities," Amelia said. "And there weren't…many choices. A lot of the Ministry Certified Educational experts didn't want to relocate to Hogwarts on such short notice, or they had other responsibilities they could understand."

"So, you have found someone or haven't you?" Umbridge asked.

"Oh, believe me, I've found someone, and I given his scores on the Certification Exams, we can both agree he's more than qualified," Amelia said.

"Well, what are you waiting for, retrieve me?" Umbridge asked. "Have I met him before?"

"Oh, I think you two know each other," Amelia said. "He's waiting outside right now, and he can't wait to work with you."

Umbridge smiled. She was pretty sure this was some young and fresh faced Ministry official who intended move up the ranks. He must have been willing to work.

Amelia waved her hand and a figure moved their way through the opened doors of the Great Hall. It was amazing how fast someone could go from extremely jubilant to extremely alarmed in a matter of seconds.

"Potter!" Umbridge yelled, pointing her wand towards him.

"Howdy, partner!" Harry yelled, in a really bad Southern Drawl. He turned up dressed in a ten gallon hat with a sheriff's badge on his robe. "There's a new sheriff in town!"

His girlfriend bet him he wouldn't do it. So, Harry did it.

It took Umbridge a few seconds to reconcile what was happening. Her breathing escalated the moment she locked eyes with Harry.

"Partner, partner, Amelia, you can't do this!" Umbridge yelled.

"You wanted a Ministry Certified Educational expert, and Harry Potter took his Ministry certification exams," Amelia said, putting the paper into Umbridge's hand.

Umbridge looked at the exam scores. The woman read them and they burned into her mind.

"This is impossible…..he must have cheated!" Umbridge yelled. "He must have paid someone off."

Harry looked from the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and then back at Umbridge. He looked at Amelia and looked back at Umbridge. He looked from Amelia and back to Umbridge. He raised his hands and threw them up in the air in response.

As the kids said on the street, he wasn't touching that one.

"Dolores, the decision has already been made," Amelia said. "If you have a problem with it….."

"I'll take it up with the Minister of Magic," Dolores said. She took a deep breath and couldn't believe the nerve of Potter. Just the unmistakable nerve of him, which angered Dolores beyond all belief. "Potter can't have this position. He's a student….."

"Actually, I was a student," Harry reminded her. "You expelled me."

This particular logic bomb nailed Umbridge and almost doubled her over. She recovered a second later.

"Fine, you didn't finish your…"

"Actually, I did," Harry said. "I received my NEWTs along with the qualification exams. And the Ministry sanctioning by participation in the Triwizard Tournament last year makes me legally an adult."

Umbridge's mouth opened and shut. She resembled less of a toad, and more like a fish who had been caught on dry land without any water in sight for miles. For a second, she looked like she was going to have a brain aneurysm, or she had been overdosed by the Kryptonite of any government official, logic.

"I'll have this sorted out," Umbridge said. "The Ministry would not have agreed to this….."

"Actually, he did agree to this," Harry said. He pulled out a piece of paper with Cornelius Fudge's signature on the bottom line. "Read it and weep, Dolores."

Umbridge snatched the paper and recognized her boss's signature all over it. She pulled out her wand and performed every single type of forgery detection spell possible.

This was the Minister of Magic's signature all over the paper.

"Cornelius would have never had signed such a document," Umbridge said.

"His signature is there," Amelia said. "It's been verified….if Cornelius chose not to read what he signed, it's his own consequence to bear."

"Yes, aren't magically binding contracts just swell, Dolores?" Harry asked.

"Mr. Potter, you won't get away with this," Umbridge said.

"I didn't trick Fudge into signing the contract," Harry said, a wicked grin passing over his face. "It's binding, legal, not quite writing your signature in blood with a questionable quill, but pretty binding, wouldn't you say?"

"Potter, you're lying…"

"Now, Dolores, remember, I must not tell lies," Harry said.

Umbridge stopped for a moment. If Harry mentioned the quill to Amelia Bones, she would be in a lot of hot water. He hung the sword over her head for a moment. Right now, Amelia was giving Umbridge a questionable look she didn't like. As if Amelia would throw the book at Umbridge, extremely hard, if she had this one smoking wand against her. She hadn't, at least not yet.

The Ministry official took a deep breath and responded with a swift smile.

"For the moment, we're working together, then," Umbridge said.

"Yes, it appears so," Harry said.

Umbridge stared at Harry in a way where it became extremely clear to Harry she would have liked nothing better than to wrap her hands around Harry's throat and squeeze all of the life out of him. Now though, Umbridge had been handcuffed and not in the good way either. The two locked eye to eye with each other.

"Well, I have to head back to the Ministry," Amelia said. "I think everything will settle down. Good luck, Professor Potter."

Amelia turned around, only barely acknowledging Umbridge with a casual nod.

"There's just one more thing," Harry said. "The High Inquisitor's responsibilities are to inspect all of the classes this school offers."

"Yes," Umbridge said. "And I have already."

"Yes, all of the classes have been inspected," Harry said. "Except for one. The Defense against the Dark Arts class."

"I teach the class, I'm certain it is up to standards," Umbridge said.

Umbridge must have briefly mistaken Harry for one of the Ministry sheep.

"Well, in the interest of fairness, all classes should be inspected," Harry said. "And considering you inspecting your own class would be a conflict of interest, the burden of inspecting it to ensure it's up to standards is up to me."

Umbridge opened her mouth for a second.

"See you on Monday, Dolores."

Harry smiled and patted her on the top of the head before turning around and walking off.

Umbridge's wand sent sparks which set the edge of one of the tables in the Great Hall on fire.

* * *

 **To Be Continued.**

* * *

 **We're going into the home stretch. Likely two or three more chapters. Because let's face it, Umbridge is getting close to attempting to throw herself off of the Astronomy Tower.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Part VI.**

* * *

Dolores Umbridge thought the moment she pulled her little ambush on Harry Potter, he would be out of her life forever, and she would have won. She had played right into a carefully laid and planned trap directed by Harry Potter. She found herself up against the wall without any way to go.

Umbridge marched to her office to get this sorted out. Surely, the Minister could do something to assist her, and get Potter out of Hogwarts. She took a handful of Floo Powder and hurled it into the fire. A burst of flames shot at her. Umbridge crouched herself down on the fire.

"Minister, Minister Fudge!" Umbridge yelled.

"Yes, Dolores?" Fudge asked. "Do you think you could make this quick, because I'm on an extremely tight schedule."

Umbridge heard the rumors how the role of the Minister of Magic aged pretty much everyone by several years. One look at Fudge indicated he had aged along with the job. He was currently sorting out papers on his desk.

"Harry Potter was named the Assistant High Inquisitor to me at Hogwarts," Umbridge said.

"Dolores, my hands are tied," Fudge said. "I can only justified keeping the position in tact by hiring you an assistant. And I thought you could enjoy the relief….."

"It's Potter…..Harry Potter!" Umbridge snapped. "The entire reason why I'm amongst all of these brats in the first place!"

Fudge almost dropped the tea glass he held in his hand. Umbridge's outburst caused him to turn extremely nervous. He had never seen Dolores Umbridge this unhinged.

"Dolores, may I suggest you just back away from this position, it's obvious…"

"No, Cornelius, I won't give up!" Umbridge yelled. "It means Potter wins, and everything we've tried to accomplish is all for nothing. I won't let some half-blood brat get the better of me!"

Fudge stared into the face in his fireplace at his Senior Undersecretary. Positively demonic didn't even begin to describe how Dolores looked right about now. Fudge began to entertain the possibility he created a monster, and Dolores had ran away with the power.

"Dolores, you need to understand, this was never….I thought you could handle this….."

"I can handle this, Minister!" Umbridge yelled. "Never forget, you wouldn't be in the place you were today, if it wasn't for me."

"Now, listen here, Madam Umbridge, I won't be talked to like that," Fudge said. "I'm the Minister of Magic, and everyone should respect me. Including my staff….especially my staff."

Fudge regretted snapping at Umbridge seconds after he did so. The entire Death Eater breakout in Azkaban caused Fudge to be pushed on edge. He dangled over the edge, taking up not a whole lot of space.

"Potter still says his lies," Umbridge said. "And you signed a paper which gave him the ability to undermine my authority….."

"Yes, I know," Fudge said. "I can't sack him, he can only quit. The contract is magically binding, like the agreement I signed for you to make you the Senior Undersecretary of the Ministry of Magic."

Umbridge fumed for a few seconds. She knew this about as much as anyone else. It agitated her to an entirely new and unsettling degree to be perfectly honest.

"He's going to inspect my class to make sure it's up to standards," Umbridge said.

"Well, then given you're a Ministry Certified Educational expert, you should have no problem making sure your class is up to standards," Fudge said.

"It depends on if he follows the class standards set up by the Founders all of those years ago," Umbridge said.

"Why would he know anything about this?" Fudge asked. "Don't worry, Dolores…..this will all work out."

Umbridge did everything she could while working by the book. Potter managed to find a way to turn around what she was doing on every single level. She went into Hogwarts confident, and now she was less so. Potter had a quality unlike any Umbridge ever saw in her life.

' _It's almost like someone has tried to break him before,'_ Umbridge thought. _'And he refuses to acknowledge a higher authority, because he craves control.'_

Umbridge plotted to take Potter out, with one last ditch effort.

* * *

Hogwart's betting pool put odds of when exactly Harry Potter would drive Dolores Umbridge out of Hogwarts. The odds were pretty high something was going to happen. It wasn't a matter of if Harry would drive Umbridge out of Hogwarts. It was a matter of exactly when Harry would drive her out of Hogwarts.

All of the students looked forward to Dolores Umbridge's Defense Against the Dark Arts class in the next few days. Harry Potter showed up at the first class of Monday morning, during the seventh year NEWT class. The students all watched Harry arrive here.

"Mr. Potter, sit down," Umbridge said.

"No, I'll stand," Harry said. "Just go about your class as you normally would."

Umbridge could not do anything amongst these witnesses. Especially since most of the people in this class resembled those who would shoot Umbridge down the very second she would try something.

"Alright, Turn to Chapter Thirty-Three, and there will be no need to talk," Umbridge said.

Harry mutters "uses unprofessional tone when dealing with students of the legal age" before jotting it down on the piece of paper.

"You know, I've found one violation in this class already," Harry said. "The lack of the practical application of the actual defense part of this Defense Against the Dark Arts class."

"Mr. Potter, you know why we're not doing this," Umbridge said.

"Did you even take the oath to be a Professor of Hogwarts?" Harry asked. "Did you take the oath where you would teach the students to the standards which the founders could have approved of?"

Umbridge calmed down and whispered something in his ear.

"Mr. Potter, the Ministry is….."

"I didn't ask you what the Ministry wanted to do, Professor Umbridge," Harry said. "I asked you if you took an oath to become a Professor at Hogwarts."

Harry jotted down more notes and started to mutter "appears to get flustered when put on the spot. Does not hold up well under pressure."

"Yes, I took an oath!" Umbridge yelled.

Harry jotted down another note and made sure Umbridge heard what he was saying. The words "has horrific temper" could be heard in her mind.

"You're baiting me, Mr. Potter," Umbridge said.

"You took an oath, Professor Umbridge," Harry said. "You took an oath to teach the students up to the standards of the founders. One of these standards is the Defense part of the Defense Against the Arts Class. Where you would teach them a practical element….unless of course you're unable to teach anyone practical magic."

Harry baited the trap even well.

"Professor Umbridge, could you please stand up to your feet?" Harry asked. "And perform a standard shield spell."

"I beg your pardon?" Umbridge asked.

"You perform a standard shield spell, to block the spell I send at you," Harry said. "Don't worry, nothing unforgivable or dark, although you might be feeling it in the morning."

"I'm not allowing you to hex me, Potter," Umbridge said.

"Very well, I guess it marks down against you," Harry said. "You're a step beneath Lockhart. He attempted to perform magic, even if the spell in question existed in his own demented fantasy of a mind."

Umbridge rose to her feet and tried to hex Harry. Harry blocked the spell without any effort whatsoever. He caused Umbridge to slide back a few feet on the floor.

"I guess you missed the reason for the demonstration," Harry said. "You were supposed to block the spell. I was supposed to send a spell. I don't care how your offense lacks. I'm more concerned about your defense."

Harry turned his hand in a corkscrew motion and sent a spell towards Umbridge. Umbridge put up the most flimsy excuse of a shield Harry saw in his life.

' _And she doesn't even move with the shield,'_ Harry thought. _'Then again, Slinkhard advises standing in the same place at once, so of course she's going to do what her hero says. Guess, she gets ten points for consistency. Minus several million for effectiveness.'_

Umbridge had been launched over the top of her desk and she landed onto the chair. Harry only injured her pride. Especially so when it became evident Harry could have chosen to injure the rest of her.

"Well, I think I've made my point," Harry said. "I'm going to around to some of the students and discuss their opinion on this class. And there will be no need to talk."

Umbridge realized her wand had flew out of her hand when Harry knocked her back and it was completely on the other side of the classroom. All Umbridge could do was place herself behind her desk with an absolute fowl scowl on her face.

"So, do you think Professor Umbridge is an adequate teacher for this subject?" Harry asked.

"Well, I wouldn't know," the Ravenclaw Harry asked said. "It's….I mean, I gave her the benefit of the doubt at first."

' _Not really a benefit in doing that,'_ Harry thought.

"But, she has us read out of this book for every class," she said. "Any teacher can have us read out of a book. That's not really teaching the class."

"Yes, she doesn't really teach the class," another Ravenclaw said. "And this goes against everything our house is against. Rowena Ravenclaw must be rolling over in her grave."

"My brother told me the standards of Hogwarts have really fallen, even before we had to settle for Umbridge….."

"I will have not have this disrespect!" Umbridge snapped.

Harry paused and smiled. He made another note on the paper. Umbridge glared at him.

"Attempts to bully students in an attempt to gain further control of class," Harry said. "Cannot maintain control without the threat of force."

Harry enjoyed observing Umbridge. He could write pages and pages of what was wrong with her class. And he would be barely scratching the surface.

"Well, this class….it needs work to get to the standards we should have at Hogwarts," Harry said. "I'm quite frankly insulted a Ministry-Certified Educational Expert thinks this class is appropriate educational standards. Not nearly as much as the fact of me being insulted by the Ministry hiring a teacher who just scraped together a Dreadful on her Defense Against the Dark Arts test."

Umbridge glowered at Potter. He made a mockery out of her.

"I'm a fair man, Professor Umbridge," Harry said. "The results of your examination will be given to you within the week. This will give you time to make adjustments."

"You don't have the authority to tell me what I should do, Mr. Potter," Umbridge said. "You are nothing, but a nasty brat who…"

"Professor Umbridge, I have to tell you are violation of Education Decree Number Forty-Two," Harry said. "A staff member must show respect to their fellow staff members. Therefore, they aren't to call staff members or any students names. Repeated violation will result in the termination of the staff member."

"Mr. Potter, I'm afraid you can't fire me," Umbridge said. "My contract states I can only quit."

"Yes," Harry said. "I do have the option to reduce the salary you make. And given a squib can just easily teach this class the way you're doing so, I think it's only fair you receive the salary of a standard squib worker in the Wizarding World."

The bell finally rang. Harry turned to the students.

"You may all leave," Harry said.

Umbridge seethed on the other side of her desk. She resembled someone who was inches away from having a stroke.

"And, I'll happily accept your resignation, if you want to give it," Harry said. "And if you have any complaints, feel free to take them up with the Board of Governors. Although, they're not too fond of the Ministry these days given the number of complaints they've received about you. Letters arriving every hour of the day, howlers arriving at dinner, people confronting them on the street. It's madness."

Harry turned around and ensured he left the classroom before giving Umbridge a chance to receive her wand.

* * *

"Our long national nightmare might be over," Harry said.

"I would say you made a fool out of her. But, she does a remarkable job of doing that herself."

Harry made sure to keep the monitoring spells around him at all times. He would not be surprised for Umbridge to do something entirely reckless out of her anger.

"I've looked over Umbridge's contract with a fine tooth comb," Harry said. "I'd like to get her quit. But, if she gets arrested, incapacitated, or killed, it's just as well."

"Are you going to….."

"It'd be too easy for her, with all she's done," Harry said. "I'd really like for her to incriminate herself. And Madam Bones is building a case of her. She just doesn't have the one piece of evidence where even Fudge wouldn't be able to explain it away."

"Do you think Fudge is going to end up throwing her underneath the bus?"

Harry leaned back and cupped a hand underneath his chin. Thoughtful pretty much described the expression on his face.

"I think there partnership has seen better days," Harry said. "Both of them are under the impression the other is going to stab each other in the back."

"And I'm sure you have absolutely nothing to do with that," she said.

"Oh, me?" he asked. "You know me, I'm completely innocent of any wrongdoings at all. I wouldn't dare do anything so deceitful."

Both of them laughed in amusement at this.

"So, Dumbledore has stayed quiet?" she asked.

"I haven't heard a peep out of him, or anything about him," Harry said. "He's yesterday's news though. Time to look forward to the future."

Harry double-checked the alarms around him. So far, so good, and so far, no Umbridge, which proved to be a pretty good thing for him.

"I've got to finish my report of the changes Umbridge needs to make," Harry said.

"I'm sure you're having a lot of fun doing that."

Harry laughed. He leaned towards his girlfriend. She hovered a few inches above the ground.

"I'm cutting out a few things," Harry said. "If I put down everything which was wrong with her class, I would be there all day."

"I'm sure you're right," she said. A buzzing flickered back.

"Problem?"

"A train is about ready to veer out of control," she said. "I better get going….talk to you later."

The two of them exchanged a brief kiss before she backed off.

"You wouldn't be my heroine if you didn't save the day," Harry said. "Good luck."

She disappeared into the distance. Harry watched her leave as he returned to his office. Well, it was formerly Dumbledore's office. It refused to let Umbridge in. It acknowledge Harry as it's master for some reason.

* * *

Harry Potter waited for the other shoe to drop. The Ministry had their own problems thanks to the breakout of the Death Eaters. People were beginning to question a lot of what the Ministry said and Fudge looked to be a man who was about ready to be nudged out on his ear.

A lot of people looked at Harry the moment he walked into the Great Hall. The other members of the staff didn't know what to make of him. Some people whispered Umbridge was this close to losing it and she may just end up lashing out and attacking Harry, consequences be damned.

"You really do love living on the edge ,don't you?" Ginny asked, sitting down next to Harry.

"Well, if you're not living on the edge, then you're just taking up way too much space," Harry said.

Ginny responded with a slight scoff and an even more prominent sigh. Only Harry would come to this conclusion.

"I'm surprised you even came back," Ginny said. "No offense, but…..if I were you, I would have left by this year, never mind all of the shit you had to deal with this year."

"Oh, I'll be gone after this year," Harry said. "The moment Umbridge is out of here, I'll be gone."

"I'm sure Dumbledore will be thrilled," Ginny said. "So, how's your girlfriend doing?"

"She's amused by this as much as I am," Harry said. "How's yours doing?"

"Well, Luna, is Luna, she's always an adventure," Ginny said. "When Mum finds out, if she finds out, she won't approve of our relationship at all."

"And I'm sure that breaks you up inside," Harry said.

"Yes," Ginny said. "Fred and George really should have invented some kind of earplugs to block Mum out."

"Well, did you suggest it to them?" Harry asked.

Ginny shrugged. She really didn't suggest it to them. It never really came up in any of their conversations.

"Are they still mad at me?" Harry asked.

"Well, they were going to do the dramatic exit thing," Ginny said. "You know, fly out of here, hurling dungbombs on Umbridge. If anything, it would be an improvement….but you just had to one up them by becoming the Assistant Inquisitor."

Harry smiled. He aimed to please, well most of the time at least. There were a lot of circumstances where he ended up getting people upset despite it wasn't his intentions.

"Where's Umbridge?"

"Maybe she finally left."

Harry hoped not. He wanted a more public dismissal than Umbridge finally slinking off into the night. After all of what the Ministry did in their insane attempts to discredit Harry, he wanted something more than them just walking off with their tail tucked in between their legs.

"Something's up, isn't it?" Ginny asked.

"Mmm, maybe," Harry said.

He wasn't completely convinced one way or another. Speak of the devil though and she should arrive in pink. Harry spotted Umbridge walking into the Great Hall. Her eyes lingered onto Harry for a moment. Harry lifted his hand up and started to wave at her.

"May I have your attention please," Umbridge said.

"Better listen to what she's going to say," Harry said. "This might be her resignation. It would be a shame to see you go, Professor Umbridge, after your years of distinguished service."

"That's it, Potter, you've humiliated me for the last time," Umbridge said. "It's time someone puts you in your place. You've caused nothing, but trouble for me this year!"

The entire Great Hall followed the example. Umbridge stood to her feet and faced Harry Potter.

"I, Dolores Jane Umbridge, challenge Harry James Potter to a duel. If he beats me in the duel, I will leave Hogwarts willingly. When I defeat him, he must own up to all of his lies."

Harry wondered if Umbridge had lost her mind. The woman's humiliation in class the other day broke her completely and now she was going for bust completely.

"I accept," Harry said. "Standard Ministry dueling rules apply, don't they?"

"Yes," Umbridge said. "In the Great Hall, after dinner. I want your friends to see your humiliation and show who they've been backing. We'll see how good you are, Potter, when the odds are even."

Harry smiled.

' _If it looks like a trap, smells like a trap, and tastes like a trap, it's a trap.'_

* * *

Dolores Umbridge made her way towards the Dungeons. A small group of the children of loyal Ministry officials crowded around Umbridge, chief among them being Draco Malfoy.

"I want all of you to listen," Umbridge said. "The moment Harry Potter comes into the Great Hall, I want you to disorient him. Use whatever means possible you can. Do this for me, and I'll ensure you all get high level spots in the Ministry, any position you want, when you graduate."

"Professor Umbridge, it would be an honor to work underneath you," Draco said. Crabbe and Goyle both chuckled at Draco's statement. "What…what in Merlin's name is so funny?"

"Just make sure the job is done, and I'll take really good care of you," Umbridge said.

Umbridge turned around and walked off. The moment she was out of ear shot, Draco turned to his Slytherin chums.

"Can't stand the woman, but humiliating Potter is going to be too good," Draco said.

A gust of wind blew behind them. Crabbe started to tap Draco on the shoulder and pointed behind them.

"What, someone just left the window op….."

* * *

Amelia Bones figured it would end something like this. She made what she hoped would be the final trip to Hogwarts. She made her way with an Auror guard. They were there to help drag the loser of this duel out of Hogwarts.

Umbridge made her way to the center of the ring. The look on her face was so smug, anyone with any amount of sense would want to slap it off of her.

Harry stepped into the middle of the ring. He walked past the entrance area. The curtain blew around him when he walked past.

Umbridge's smile widened the moment where Harry walked over. He looked a little bit disoriented the second he walked towards her.

"Well, Potter, are you ready to begin?" Umbridge asked.

"Yes, I'm ready," Harry said in a slurred voice.

Umbridge could not believe Malfoy and his cronies did something right. She would have to personally reward them when this was over.

She fired off the first spell. The spell came as close to hitting Harry before he put the shield up. Umbridge raised her hand and tried to nail Harry with another spell.

It had been blocked again. Her frustration turned extremely visible. Harry blew through her shield one more time and lifted Umbridge off of the ground.

Dolores Umbridge came crashing down to the ground! The people at Hogwarts cheered big time. Umbridge rose to a standing position and tried to nail Harry one more time.

Harry pivoted in mid air, and did a two punch combination. He disarmed her and broken every single bone in her body in the process. He knocked the wind out of Umbridge and dropped her to her knees.

"You lose," Harry said.

"NO!" Umbridge yelled. "Every single time, you keep…HOW DO YOU DO IT? I send the Dementors after you, and you get off….."

Amelia Bones heard every single incriminating word coming from Umbridge. She pulled herself to her a standing position.

Umbridge didn't know what to do. She knew the Aurors made their way towards Umbridge.

"The Minister of Magic will hear about this!" Umbridge yelled.

"I'm sure you rank low on his list of priorities," Harry said.

Umbridge tried to dive at Harry, despite not having a wand. The Aurors restrained her and prevented her from going after him. They chained Umbridge up and dragged her protesting body out of Hogwarts.

The curtains pulled back and several groggy Slytherins tried to raise up to their feet. Harry stood over them. Draco Malfoy pulled himself to his feet before collapsing down.

"What hit me?" Draco asked.

"I'm not sure," Harry said. "I'm sure it was faster than a speeding bullet."

Umbridge had been escorted out of the school in disgrace. Everyone cheered.

All was well.

* * *

 **To Be Concluded in the Final Chapter.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Part VII:**

* * *

Cornelius Fudge sighed when he peered through the window at St. Mungos. He never thought it would end this day, for Dolores, poor Dolores, she really didn't deserve this. Fudge realized how much his hands had been tied regarding Potter. More evidence came through which indicated the boy might have in fact been telling the truth regarding the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

Fudge wouldn't admit it out right, to be fair. He knew it would be very bad if he did admit something along those lines out right.

The healers left the room where Umbridge had been kept for observation. Fudge wished he had insisted more she had pulled out while the getting had been good. Unfortunately, Dolores's pride proved to be a rather hard downfall.

"How is she?" Fudge asked.

"She's…not exactly mentally stable right now," one of the healers said.

"Yes, of course," Cornelius said. "It would be for the best if she's kept isolated and heavily medicated….we wouldn't want her to….we wouldn't want her to become a danger to herself and others."

Cornelius Fudge allowed a lot of things to be swept underneath the rug. One thing he had been forced to acknowledge was the confession Umbridge made. She blurted out, perhaps under duress, she sent the Dementors after Harry Potter. Amelia Bones believed her to be telling the truth.

Fudge worked hard to cover up the fact two Dementors had been missing from their post on the night Potter performed the Patronus which caused this entire mess to start rolling down. He never expected Dolores to be the one who would blow up this entire mess.

"Make sure she never leaves this room," Fudge said. "She's….well we don't want her to hurt anyone, do we?"

Everyone involved kept their eyes locked onto Fudge. One could almost read between the lines with what Fudge had said. He did not want Dolores Umbridge to say anything.

"The Ministry will ensure your donation is available in the morning," Fudge said. "I have some work to do, you all have a pleasant day."

Fudge looked towards the window and peered into the room to see Umbridge. Umbridge rocked back and forth, she clutched an object in her hand which she would not part with.

' _A real pity.'_

The Minister hated to do this. He had no real choice other than to do this. He turned his back and walked towards the nearest exit. He left Dolores Umbridge in the midst of her insanity. The woman started to rock back and forth, cradling an object in his hand.

"You thought you could get away with this, couldn't you?" Umbridge asked. "Didn't you, Potter? Oh, I finally have you now, you little brat!"

Umbridge wrapped her hands around the throat of the velvet Harry Potter doll she had swiped from one of the children on her way here. Little girls should not be allowed to hold onto false idols. Umbridge tightened her grip around the doll.

"Yes, yes, yes, Potter!" Umbridge yelled. "You're now going to be punished! How do you like that, Potter?"

Umbridge bit down onto the doll's head in an attempt to rip it off. She frothed at the mouth with her anger. The moment she finished ripping into the doll, the Healers made their way down.

"No, stand back!" Umbridge yelled. "There will be justice! I will have order."

"Yes, Madam Umbridge, we have a huge heaping helping of justice for you right here," one of the Healers said.

Umbridge's gaze raised up and she saw the Healers approaching her with a large needle. She blanched when the healers resembled shifted into three laughing versions of Harry Potter.

"Time to take your medicine, Dolores!" Harry said with a wicked laughter.

"No, no, no," Umbridge yelled. "You'll pay…..you'll pay for ruining me, Potter….HANDS OFF ME, POTTER!"

The two versions of Harry Potter grabbed Umbridge by the arms. The third injected enough sedative in her neck to stop a troll in its tracks. Umbridge's gaze went over and drool started to drip from the side of her mouth. Her entire body shuddered underneath the sedative.

"We're going to have to prep her for the procedure," one of the Healers said. "She's lost it."

The doll finally detached from Umbridge's hand. The little girl would need her doll back.

X-X-X

The latest Daily Prophet headline indicated the fact Fudge had been under investigation and may be on his way out as Minister of Magic. Also, buried in the news was the fact the Department of Magical Law Enforcement started to look more seriously into the claims Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore made regarding Voldemort returning last summer.

' _Only took them long enough to extract their heads from their backside,'_ Harry thought. _'Better late than never.'_

Amelia Bones assigned a rotating group of senior and retired Aurors to take control of the Defense Against the Dark Arts classes until a new teacher could be located. One of them happened to be one Mad-Eye Moody. The real one this time, as far as Harry could tell.

' _Yep, real deal.'_

Harry checked the Marauder's Map and verified it had been Moody. Harry, on the other hand, smiled when he looked at Educational Decree Number Fifty. His final gift to Hogwarts, and his final gift to Albus Dumbledore to thank him for allowing him the honor of staying at the Dursleys for all of those years.

"From this day forward, the office of the Minister of Magic is forbidden from meddling in the education of the students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. No one who has or has ever held a high ranking position of power in the magical government is permitted to work at Hogwarts whether it be Teacher, Head, or otherwise. Signed, Harry James Potter, Acting High Inquisitor."

Harry had a couple of loose ends to tie up, but for now, he left Hogwarts as the founders intended it.

He made his way outside and smiled.

The sun shined, and Umbridge had been banished from Hogwarts, it was a beautiful day. Harry mentally put the finishing touches on his plan to take care of the Dark Lord problem, and he would be off.

"It's ready, isn't it?" Harry asked.

"Yes, it's designed to hold some of the worst criminals in the universe, so it should hold him, until we track down all of his soul jars."

"Excellent," Harry said.

"So, ready to leave this world behind?"

Harry smiled at his heroine. "Yes, Kara."

* * *

 **The End.**


End file.
